The New York Post’s West Coast offshoot, the California Post, has hired Breitbart senior editor-at-large Joel Pollak as its opinion editor, signifying the tabloid plans to maintain its rightward leanings as it expands out west early next year.
“Joel joins us at a moment when California is hungry for something different, journalism with backbone and authenticity,” said Nick Papps, the California Post’s editor in chief. “Our opinion pages will be a space for wit, rigor, and real debate, not echo chambers. Joel’s leadership will help make that vision a reality.”
Papps, who joined the paper in August after years at News Corp’s Australian division, told staffers in a memo that Pollak marked a “key addition” as it built out “a bold, distinctly West Coast voice for news and commentary.”
“Joel brings a deep understanding of politics, media, and California’s place in the national conversation,” Papps wrote. Papps said Pollack’s first piece, published Monday, “gives a glimpse of the sharp perspective and conviction he’ll bring to our opinion pages.”
Pollak spent 15 years at Breitbart, joining the right-wing website first as its in-house counsel, and briefly serving as its editor in chief before taking on his current roles of senior editor-at-large and the host of Breitbart’s SiriusXM show, “Breitbart News Sunday.” His mentors have included the likes of Andrew Breitbart and famed attorney Alan Dershowitz, and his recent pieces have opined on the Israel-Gaza war, California’s redistricting proposition and ABC’s “The View.”
Pollak, a California resident who tried to save his home during the Palisades fires in January, said in a statement that “the fire changed my life.”
“In the days after, I saw neighbors connect across politics and backgrounds to rebuild together. It reminded me what’s missing in so much of our public life, accountability, empathy, and common sense,” he wrote. “The California Post is here to reflect that spirit back to the state. I’m proud to help shape an opinion section that asks tough questions, celebrates what works, and gives Californians the kind of honest, fearless debate they deserve.”
The addition continues the Post’s attempt to break into the California market, which already boasts the paper’s second-largest group of readers in Los Angeles. It comes at a time when newspapers across the state, including the Los Angeles Times, have scaled back.
