NY Times Confirms Employee at Headquarters Tested Positive for Coronavirus

“We continue to believe that having the vast majority of our colleagues work remotely is in everyone’s best interest,” says an internal memo

New York Times building
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In an email sent to staff Monday night, New York Times publisher A.G. Sulzberger and executive editor Dean Baquet confirmed an employee working in the paper’s Manhattan headquarters has tested positive for the coronavirus.

“We are writing to let you know that a newsroom colleague based at 620 Eighth Avenue tested positive today for Covid-19. The staff member has not been hospitalized and is in self-quarantine, recovering at home. The individual was last in the office on Thursday, March 5,” according to the email from Sulzberger and Baquet, reviewed by TheWrap.

“Because of privacy considerations, we do not intend to identify the employee but we have informed all the individuals who were in close proximity to this colleague,” the message continued. “We’ve been in contact with each and asked them to monitor their health and self-quarantine. We’ll continue to monitor this situation and provide updates as necessary.”

The note concluded, “We continue to believe that having the vast majority of our colleagues work remotely is in everyone’s best interest. Even as we rise to the challenge of providing the public with essential news and information in this difficult moment, we’re focused on doing everything we can to support the health and safety of our staff and their loved ones.”

Publishing is just one of the American industries being hit hard during the coronavirus spread. Scores of events have been canceled in tech, media, politics and entertainment. The Tribeca Film Festival, Rock & Roll Hall of Fame 2020 induction ceremony and Coachella are among the events being postponed or canceled in reaction to the spread of the virus.

TV productions have been suspended or delayed, as have movies. Elsewhere, talk shows have forgone live studio audiences while Disneyland, other entertainment parks and thousands of movie theaters have announced closures, as has Broadway.

Consumers aren’t the only ones affected; the May upfronts — where networks present their programming slates — have all been canceled.

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