Well, well, well, Taylor Lorenz is back in the spotlight again, and this time it’s for calling President Biden a “war criminal” at a White House event. Yep, you read that right. Lorenz, the journalist famous for sparking controversies and making herself the story, has left The Washington Post after what can only be described as an extended period of awkward silence from the paper. She hadn’t published anything since August when this whole “war criminal” debacle went viral, and now she’s off to greener (or at least less restrictive) pastures on Substack. But hey, at least she’s spinning her exit as some kind of grandstand for independent journalism.
Amid massive layoffs at the Washington Post, Taylor Lorenz quits before she can be fired.
She is moving on to launch a Substack … which basically means she is now self employed and will have to survive on subscribers actually paying to read what she writes about. pic.twitter.com/qL2NkXum8c
— Wall Street Silver (@WallStreetSilv) October 1, 2024
Let’s rewind for a second. In August, a screenshot surfaced showing Lorenz at the White House Creator Economy Conference, where she decided to snap a selfie with Biden in the background and slap on a caption calling him a “war criminal” with a sad face for good measure. Classy, right? Naturally, people lost their minds and Lorenz’s initial response? Denial. She claimed the image was edited and that folks had fallen for a “dumba– edit.”
Except, plot twist: It wasn’t edited. In fact, she eventually admitted that, yes, she did post the image herself—just that it was meant to be an “obvious meme.” Because who doesn’t joke about war crimes at a professional event? Am I right? She later tried to clarify that it was a joke posted to her close friends on Instagram, meaning it wasn’t supposed to go public. Apparently, “only about 7 people” were supposed to see it. Well, Taylor, welcome to the internet, where nothing stays private, especially when you’re a public figure attending a high-profile White House event.
Meanwhile, The Washington Post was doing the classic PR shuffle, dodging questions about whether or not Lorenz had been suspended over the controversy. It wasn’t until early October—nearly two months after the fact—that they confirmed her departure. According to Lorenz, she’s leaving legacy media because her style of reporting has become “increasingly difficult to do in corporate media.” Translation: she’s moving to Substack, where she can post whatever she wants without those pesky editorial standards getting in the way.
Tay Tay rn https://t.co/SUz1xHeY1G pic.twitter.com/3824nwuG3G
— Libs of TikTok (@libsoftiktok) October 2, 2024
Of course, this isn’t the first time Lorenz has stirred the pot. She’s got a long history of controversies, both in her reporting and her social media antics. Whether it’s feuding with influencers or getting called out for questionable tactics, she’s always seemed to find a way to keep the drama alive. And now, with her newfound independence on Substack and her podcast with Vox, it looks like she’s doubling down on her personal brand of “journalism.”
.@TaylorLorenz is a deeply troubled narcissist. For her own sake, she should not have a job in the public eye. https://t.co/KNHYhztYkY
— Steve Cortes (@CortesSteve) April 1, 2022
So here we are. Lorenz has left The Washington Post after calling the sitting president a war criminal (as a joke, of course), and she’s off to chart her own course. The real question is: how long before she sparks the next controversy? Place your bets.
