The Los Angeles Times has shed six newsroom leaders of color in less than a month, a troubling outcome for the publication which has historically struggled to create a diverse newsroom in the multicultural city of Los Angeles.
Even before Jan. 22’s historic layoffs of 120 newsroom staff — which has already disproportionately affected staffers of color — three Black and brown editors from the masthead had stepped down: executive editor Kevin Merida and managing editors Shani Hilton, both of whom are Black, and Sara Yasin, who is of Palestinian origin.
Their departures were followed a week later by the dismissal of at least three more prominent editors of color.