mediabistro.com: FishbowlNY

BREAKING (and finally, broken): Judith Miller and the NYT

Judith Miller has officially "retired" from the NYT. Per Kit Seelye:

The New York Times and Judith Miller, a veteran reporter for the paper, reached an agreement today that ends her 28-year career at the newspaper and caps more than two weeks of negotiations.

The sticking point -- that op-ed piece -- morphed into a compromise: The Times will print her letter to the editor, under the headline "Judith Miller's Farewell," to be published tomorrow.

There has been a lot written about this (understatement of the year) and the matter is far from over (Jay Rosen still needs answers, dammit!), but this chapter, finally, is closed (poor Gabe Sherman, rendered obsolete already!).

No doubt there will be much more ink spilled (or, shall we say, staining hands) to come but for now, to me, says it all:

"Ms. Miller could not be reached for comment."

Bill Keller's memo -- let's hope the last on this matter -- linked and reprinted after the jump.

Times and Reporter Reach Agreement on Her Departure [NYT]
Times Editor's Memo to Staff on Judith Miller [NYT]

To the Staff:

Judy Miller has retired from The New York Times effective today.

In her 28 years at The Times, Judy participated in some great, prize-winning journalism. She displayed fierce determination and personal courage both in pursuit of the news and in resisting assaults on the freedom of news organizations to report. We wish her well in the next phase of her career.

Bill

P.S. Judy asked that I share with you a letter I sent regarding my recent memo to the staff. It is attached, and speaks for itself.

Dear Judy,

I know you've been distressed by the memo I sent to the staff about things I wish I'd done differently in the course of this ordeal. Let me be clear on two points you've raised.

First, you are upset with me that I used the words "entanglement" and "engagement" in reference to your relationship with Scooter Libby. Those words were not intended to suggest an improper relationship. I was referring only to the series of interviews through which you and the paper became caught up in an epic legal controversy.

Second, you dispute my assertion that "Judy seems to have misled" Phil Taubman when he asked whether you were one of the reporters to whom the White House reached out with the Wilson story. I continue to be troubled by that episode. But you are right that Phil himself does not contend that you misled him; and, of course, I was not a participant in the conversation between you and Phil.

I wish you all the best for the future.

Regards, Bill