Washington Post ordered to rehire Karen Attiah

journalismAug 24, 20266736,871

An independent arbitrator has ordered The Washington Post to reinstate opinion columnist Karen Attiah, ruling the paper wrongfully terminated her after she posted about “white men who espouse hatred and violence” following the assassination of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The arbitrator found The Post “did not have good and sufficient cause” to fire Attiah and that the paper violated its labor agreement, and awarded her full back pay and lost benefits. Attiah was fired in September 2025 over the social media posts; the decision directs the newspaper to return her to her position. The arbitration award is accompanied by legal documents made public and cited in news accounts. Among the fallout, two of the three Washington Post executives who were involved in the firing, named in reporting as Will Lewis and Adam O'Neal alongside Wayne Connell, have since left their roles. The ruling triggers the immediate practical step of rehiring plus compensation and sharpens scrutiny of how newsroom discipline and union labor rules intersect with journalists' social posts.

Karen Attiah

@karenattiah.bsky.social

BREAKING: After the Washington Post fired me last year for speaking the truth in the wake of the Charlie Kirk killing, I fought back. And I'm happy to announce: I won my case against the Washington Post. They have been ordered to reinstate me immediately. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/24/b...

2953145d ago

Karen Attiah3659

More to say soon... but. WE DID IT, Y'ALL. WE DID IT.

Ben Collins881

This is the coolest shit that has ever happened. Please have fun with this next step. No quarter.

Claudia: lesbian space merc326

With back pay, interest, and punitive damages on top, I hope.

Sarah Kendzior291

Take the settlement money and run. Anyone who’d pull that shit then won’t let you shine now.

PinkTweets154

They should have known better!

Rude Law Dog50

this rules, great job fighting back (and congrats)

Quoting this

Anna Gifty299

BLACK WOMEN REMAIN THE BLUEPRINT FOR LIBERATION. @karenattiah.bsky.social is a loud reminder to keep on fighting.

Lady Luddite (KJ Colt)23

Fighting back can work. Please fight back like Karen did

sakura christmas14

Thinking a lot about my courageous college friend, Felicia Sonmez, today, who also lost her job as a national reporter at the Washington Post—for speaking out about the toxic sexism in the newsroom back in 2023.

Atima Omara7

Brava Karen! Great day for journalism and democracy And as we come up on Labor Day this is possible when you have a strong workplace union behind you too.

Pamela in CA5

Women lead. Karen. Allison. Katie. Getting it done.

Il parle très bien3

That 92% stays winning. You love to see it.

ColoradoKrista2

This is how you fight fascism. What a badass you are @karenattiah.bsky.social. You are the light we need in this world. THANK YOU for fighting. 🙏

Heather Campbell2

This brought me hope today. Thank you @karenattiah.bsky.social.✊🏾👏🏾

Michael Corey2

@karenattiah.bsky.social has been an inspiration to me in how to approach these years of cowardly self-censorship. Standing up for yourself is important because it's the right thing to do, but also because it often works. And capitulating never does.

Norm Eisen

@normeisen.bsky.social

VICTORY: Karen Attiah wins her case against Bezos' Washington Post An arbitrator has now ruled that no fortune is big enough to buy the 1st Amendment. She is REINSTATED @democracydefendersfund.org is proud to rep her w/ @wbng.org in this landmark fight

117745d ago

Andrew M. | Founder & Advisor 🇬🇷 🇺🇸5

Why would she want to return to that shit hole of a paper?

Cherteapet2

Oh, wow! I can't believe it. Good outcome.

Karen A.2

You are the BEST! Thank you for fighting for our rights!

Chris Lombardi2

Not just rehire her; make her opinion editor, and drag the section out of its State Media phase

Bill Steen, Jr.1

Well done @normeisen.bsky.social and @democracydefendersaction.org !

Steed & Peel 231

If you don’t fight you won’t win. Congrats, Karen.

Quoting this

Chris Lombardi4

Not just rehire her; make her opinion editor, and drag the section out of its State Media phase

Indivisible Justice For All #1MillionRising3

Thank you Norm for including a link to the article in NYT.

Shelley 💙🦋2

Good News! #blues #karenattiah #journalisticfreedom

Kim2

We must never stop fighting the billionaires and Republicans, we are winning a lot more than most know in these fights!

Kyle Griffin

@kylegriffin1.bsky.social

An independent arbitrator ruled that former Washington Post columnist Karen Attiah was wrongfully terminated last year over social posts tied to the death of Charlie Kirk, and ordered her reinstated with back pay and lost benefits.

110544d ago

wtfnyt.bsky.social9

As they should have! FU Bezos!

David5

I hope she gets a ton of money. cbwrong.blogspot.com/2026/08/it-i...

Beverly Mann4

Oh wow! And not just because I was a fan of her columns.

Unfrozen Caveman Librarian2

Two things that will never get old: 1. Dunking on Charlie Kirk 2. Charlie Kirk

🕊GIVE PEACE A CHANCE🕊2

Love the "back-pay & lost-benefits" part!

Mary Sweeney2

I'm not an independent arbitrator and I agree with this ruling.

Quoting this

Allison Gill1184

Congratulations to @karenattiah.bsky.social and @normeisen.bsky.social et al!!

Shannon Appelcline24

I hope all the successful lawsuits regarding people expressing their free speech rights following Charlie Kirk‘s assassination have taught schools and companies that it can be very expensive to kowtow to fascist threats and censorship. Because: fuck censorship.

Phil Lewis

@phillewis.bsky.social

An arbitrator has ordered The Washington Post to reinstate Karen Attiah The arbitrator said in a written decision that The Post “did not have good and sufficient cause” to terminate her and “violated” its labor agreement

98945d ago

Adrian (TheGoonVO)20

yeah in a world filled to the brim with story after story of loss - this was a good one to see this morning

Scott Brown13

Hope she gets her back pay and then goes to a place that actually appreciates her. Fuck the WP.

D.8

TALK YOUR BIGGEST SHIT. Shake shit DOWN when you march through them halls again. bsky.app/profile/kare...

Sam O Yed2

The courts are doing more than they are getting credit for. Even at the SC level. But there’s a lot of work to do. And the SC imbalance must be addressed. It must act as a non-partisan body, with term limits, transparency, strict oversight, etc. It’s the only way.

Tooey2

Good news for a Monday morning!

S. Grisham1

I feel like a powerful billionaire who wants to own US media shouldn’t be afraid of words. Any of them.

Quoting this

Snarky Robot8

Every little victory over the shittiest people brings some measure of hope for the future.

Mickey of The Mountain (she/her) 💙3

Wonderful news, #KarenAttiah has always been amazing. She'll hopefully next go where she'll be properly valued, defended, and appreciated⬇️

Kat O’Brien3

Bravo to Karen, for fighting for freedom of speech and winning in arbitration. I know this can not have been an easy battle to be in, especially in a time when top leaders in the U.S. are purging women and Black people from leadership and high-visibility roles. Huge props @karenattiah.bsky.social

RoseMarie

@rosesbloom24.bsky.social

An independent arbitrator has ordered The Washington Post to reinstate journalist Karen Attiah with full back pay and benefits, ruling that the news organization had no just cause to fire her over social media posts about (cont.) www.theroot.com/karen-attiah...

63945d ago

RoseMarie13

race and political violence following the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. Attiah, a past Root 100 honoree, spent more than a decade at The Post as an opinion columnist and editor, including as a founding editor of Global Opinions. (cont.)

Claude McDonald1

Good for her, but they will just make up another reason to fire her.

Quoting this

Pokin5

YESSSS KAREN ATTIAH REINSTATED! @karenattiah.bsky.social

Yashar Ali 🐘

@yasharali.bsky.social

BREAKING A private arbitrator has ordered The Washington Post to rehire the opinion columnist Karen Attiah, who was fired in September over her social media posts about the assassination of the conservative activist Charlie Kirk. It also ordered the company to compensate her with back pay.

71445d ago

Shana at the Cottage11

Love to see it Though god knows if she wants that job back

Luxe Chronicles8

Looks like @karenattiah.bsky.social just served up a whole load of wahala to WaPo. 😎 Loving it!

That Nerd3

Private arbiters are notoriously anti-employee. There could be even more to this than we'd been told.

John Robinson2

Ms. Attiah said that she hoped the decision “sends a message to journalists and media institutions everywhere that freedom of expression is always worth fighting for.”

Chaz.NYC 🌈🇺🇸 🇺🇦🌻🇨🇦🔞🏴‍☠️🇮🇱 #NAFO1

COME WORK FOR US: www.thomsonreuters.com/en/careers

howardappel.bsky.social1

To those saying she should now quit, NO. although diminished, the WAPO still has a broad audience, and I want her, and expect that she intends, to keep speaking truth to power, just as she originally did in the article in question. Please keep it up Ms. Attiah, we need your voice out there.

Quoting this

Amy Dickinson9

Fired for DOING HER JOB.

Hiding in the Burgh5

This is becoming a Good News Monday morning.

Bill Grueskin

@bgrueskin.bsky.social

Of the 3 Washpost executives involved in Attiah's firing, two of them -- Will Lewis and Adam O'Neal -- are now out the door. Neither will be missed.

Lawyers for The Washington Post and Ms. Attiah made their arguments before Ms. Espinosa in June during a hearing that included testimony from Ms. Attiah; Adam O'Neal, then the opinion editor at The Washington Post; and Wayne Connell, the company's chief human resources officer. Ms. Attiah was represented by Democracy Defenders Action, a progressive nonprofit co-founded by the lawyer Norman Eisen, and by the Washington-Baltimore News Guild. In his testimony, Mr. O'Neal said that he saw Ms. Attiah's posts the morning after Mr. Kirk died and sent them to Mr. Connell, according to a transcript of the hearing obtained by The New York Times. "Karen's social media feed yesterday and today is beyond the pale, completely unacceptable for someone associated with Opinions," Mr. O'Neal wrote, according to the transcript. Soon after, Mr. O'Neal and Mr. Connell met with Will Lewis, then the chief executive of The Washington Post, to discuss the posts, according to the transcript. They ultimately decided to fire Ms. Attiah.

47545d ago

Richard Levine3

They’re out, and she’s back in.

jeremy ꩜2

What are the chances that Lewis and O’Neal will just bounce to some other high paid role at another media org and never suffer any real consequence?

slicedhand1

Ah... but why would she want to work there? The paper has zero credibility.

BK1

All 3 should be stained by this forever.

the surreal dan tynan1

She should spend the rest of her tenure there critiquing the Washington Post’s transformation into a megaphone for billionaires. Assume the role of public editor, since no one else at Wapo seems willing to do that. Make them try to fire her again.

Ben Mullin

@benmullin.bsky.social

NEWS: The Washington Post has been ordered to rehire @karenattiah.bsky.social , the columnist it fired last year for posts made in the wake of Charlie Kirk's shooting. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/24/b...

43945d ago

Informed Takes6

wtop.com/dc/2026/06/p... Click this one instead. Dont give NYT the satisfaction. 🤗

Nancy Roth1

Thanks for the gift link!🎁

Quoting this

Eugene Freedman4

There is no mention in the article about any backpay or make whole relief, which I would have assumed was also part of the grievance's requested remedy.

Jeff Schultz2

Score one for the good guys (and gals).

Aaron Parnas

@aaronparnas.bsky.social

NEWS: Trump furious as White House exodus begins. Staff sees writing on the wall. Iran’s economic D-Day begins. Washington Post ordered to reinstate Laren Attiah. And so much more. Subscribe to support my work: aaronparnas.substack.com/p/news-mass-...

35145d ago

Elliot Edelstein5

Fck Trump and anybody that works for him as well

Adam CA3

He’s fucked. Unfortunately, he fucked us too. Thanks MAGA. All because you can’t stand the idea of people who don’t look or live like you.

JoinTheATeam3

So happy that Karen will be reinstated!

Luke David Thorbjorn-Calcino (Thorburn-Calcino)2

Where is Nadia, fam? christianintelligence.com/missing-epst...

Neonila 🇺🇸🇺🇦1

@aaronparnas.bsky.social Thank-you for providing timely updates

RN Mayhem1

They may still be safe

Quoting this

DocGaby33

"Trump ist wütend, während der Exodus aus dem Weißen Haus beginnt. Die Mitarbeiter*innen sehen die Zeichen der Zeit. Der wirtschaftliche „D-Day“ für den Iran beginnt. Die „Washington Post“ wurde angewiesen, Laren Attiah wieder einzustellen."

The Contrarian

@contrariannews.org

LEGAL WIN: Karen Attiah, the award-winning journalist wrongfully fired from the Washington Post, has won a landmark victory against her former employer. This is a major win for the First Amendment, freedom of the press — and a reflection of your subscription dollars at work.

27445d ago

The Contrarian108

Contrarian Publisher, Norm Eisen had the following to say after this year-long battle: “This victory is more than a labor dispute; it is a pushback against a broader effort by corporate media and rising authoritarianism in the federal government to silence dissent and erode the public square.”

Ryan Goodman

@rgoodlaw.bsky.social

Document: Arbitration Decision & Award In the Matter Between the Washington Post and Karen Attiah www.justsecurity.org/wp-content/u...

18045d ago

Larry Mishel4

gotta love due process in a union contract!

Quoting this

CLJohnson3

Well reasoned abitrator's decision, which finds that Washington Post improperly fired writer for her Bluesky social media posts. In my view, the Charlie Kirk right wing moral panic drove the Post's decision.

☀️ Jon Schwarz ☀️

@schwarz.bsky.social

Three Washington Post executives — Adam O'Neal, Wayne Connell & Will Lewis — were involved in the decision to fire Karen Attiah in 2025. Between then and now, with the Post being forced to rehire Attiah, two of those three have themselves lost their jobs: nytimes.com/2026/08/24/b...

12144d ago

Justin Baragona

@justinbaragona.bsky.social

Arbitrator orders the Washington Post to re-hire Karen Attiah and provide her back pay, saying they violated the paper's labor agreement by firing her over her Charlie Kirk posts. www.nytimes.com/2026/08/24/b...

10745d ago

Jake Adelstein

@tokyovice.bsky.social

Sometimes the good guys win. My friend Karen Attiah was wrongfully fired by the Washington Post. Now an arbitrator says: rehire her, with back pay Karen stood up for Khashoggi and against tyranny. Bezos? He’s a Trump sycophant and a traitor. Welcome back! www.nytimes.com/2026/08/24/b...

9645d ago