Well, that didn’t last long.
Conservative writer Kevin D. Williamson, formerly of National Review, has been let go by The Atlantic after just one article.
Feminist pundit Jessica Valenti tweeted Thursday:
Kevin Williamson has been fired from The Atlantic.
From Jeffrey Goldberg’s letter to staff: “The language he used in this podcast—and in my conversations with him in recent days—made it clear that the original tweet did, in fact, represent his carefully considered views.”
— Jessica Valenti (@JessicaValenti) April 5, 2018
“The tweet was not merely an impulsive, decontextualized, heat-of-the-moment post…Furthermore, the language used in the podcast was callous and violent. This runs contrary to The Atlantic’s tradition of respectful, well-reasoned debate, and to the values of our workplace.”
— Jessica Valenti (@JessicaValenti) April 5, 2018
I still believe Williamson never should have been hired, but I’m so glad that @TheAtlantic is now taking this seriously. Most of all, I am very relieved for the women who work at the magazine.
— Jessica Valenti (@JessicaValenti) April 5, 2018
More from Goldberg’s memo: pic.twitter.com/gnTi9qpDZG
— Michael Calderone (@mlcalderone) April 5, 2018
Williamson is a conservative who was strongly against Donald Trump’s campaign in the 2016 primaries and has continued to be a critic since Trump took office. He was hired by The Atlantic, a center-left publication, to write about politics.
His hiring was controversial among many on the left due to Williamson’s strong anti-abortion stance. In a tweet from years ago, Williamson said that women getting abortions should be treated like murderers. “I believe that the law should treat abortion like any other homicide,” he tweeted, also suggesting “hanging” as a punishment.
Many media figures reacted to the news on Twitter:
Kevin Williamson: hired for his talent, fired for his views. This is chilling.
— Noah Rothman (@NoahCRothman) April 5, 2018
Report: @TheAtlantic has already fired Kevin Williamson. This strikes me as a terrible, respect-losing move on the editor’s part.
— Robby Soave (@robbysoave) April 5, 2018
Never Trump, the public humiliation of Kevin Williamson demonstrates the indisputable fact…
You can side with the left and hope to be allowed to exist as a domesticates lap dog like David Brooks or Bret Stephens…
Or you can accept this is an existential fight and join us.
— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) April 5, 2018
If Kevin Williamson and @bariweiss are too controversial for Leftists to allow a platform, this raises a serious question: is there anyone to the right of David Frum who isn’t?
— Ben Shapiro (@benshapiro) April 5, 2018
the kevin williamson thing is a two-fer. it exposes once again how the mainstream media bends over backwards for repugnant conservatism and it also gives conservatives another chance to play-act at being victims of the big liberal machine.
— Oliver Willis (@owillis) April 5, 2018
Kevin Williamson was Never Trump *and* one of the most talented writers of his generation. They still wouldn’t let him work for a a venerable liberal institution. Let that be a lesson.
— Mark Hemingway (@Heminator) April 5, 2018
Kevin Williamson’s firing is a reminder that there are two Americas and one side will stop at nothing to silence the other. This is not about a bad tweet or a bad view. It is about the left wanting a monopoly on the public square so none can be exposed to competing ideas.
— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) April 5, 2018
The conservative defenses of Kevin Williamson are all about the abstract idea of intellectual diversity. The liberal arguments against the hire were about Williamson’s specific qualities as a writer — his calls for execution of women and comparing a black kid to a primate.
— Zack Beauchamp (@zackbeauchamp) April 5, 2018
Update; Kevin Williamson has been fired from @TheAtlantic. As it should be. Threatening violence against women is not a rhetorical device or a joke under any circumstances. And abortion is and should remain a legal option. Period. Full stop. https://t.co/xrkDndIkh5
— ilyse hogue (@ilyseh) April 5, 2018