The union representing New York Times staffers is urging the company to abandon a potential partnership between sports outlet The Athletic and prediction market Kalshi, warning that a deal could compromise the news organization’s journalistic independence.
The NewsGuild of New York sent a letter Wednesday to Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger, The Athletic publisher David Perpich and senior editors demanding that the prospective partnership not move forward, according to Front Office Sports.
“Any partnership between Kalshi and The Athletic would threaten our journalistic independence across the company,” the union wrote. “Despite management’s claim that The Athletic and The New York Times are separate business entities, the journalism and the work are intertwined, as any reader can see.”
The Athletic will not move forward with a sports betting or prediction markets partnership with Kalshi, TheWrap has learned. The decision was made several days ago and independently of the union letter, according to a person familiar with the matter.
However, The Athletic is said to still be discussing potential advertising and other commercial opportunities with Kalshi, the insider noted.
The guild letter was unanimously approved by the Times Guild Unit Council and The Athletic’s contract action team.
The union specifically objected to any agreement that goes beyond traditional advertising by integrating Kalshi’s products into The Athletic’s journalism, arguing it could raise questions about the outlet’s independence when covering prediction markets.
The Athletic and Kalshi had been in advanced talks over a sponsorship agreement, FOS reported last month, though no deal had been finalized. The outlet’s previous sponsorship agreement with BetMGM expired earlier this year.
Kalshi declined to comment on the potential deal, telling TheWrap it does not discuss “rumored deals.”
“Millions of people use prediction markets like Kalshi to view the forecasts on what’s happening in the world because data shows they’re quite accurate,” a Kalshi spokesperson said. “They’re a great complement to news sites like TheWrap, The Athletic, and The New York Times.”
The New York Times and The Athletic declined to comment.
The union’s concerns come as Kalshi expands its presence across sports and media. The company has existing integrations with CNN and CNBC that incorporate prediction-market data into broadcasts.
TheWrap reported in April that Fox Corp. also struck a deal with Kalshi to bring its prediction data to Fox News, Fox Business, Fox Weather and Fox One. The agreement included sponsored integrations across Fox’s television and digital platforms.
The Athletic’s union representatives said traditional advertising itself is not necessarily the issue, but integrating an advertiser’s products directly into journalism is.
“The Times runs ads from a large range of companies, but any deal that integrates an advertiser’s marketing and products directly into our news coverage and journalistic content is concerning to us,” Austin Meek, a senior Athletic writer and member of its bargaining committee, told Front Office Sports.
