Monica...You are amazing! I am so happy for you! Congratulations on a wonderful career and for being a mentor for all women who must struggle to make a name for themselves in our society. Your story is inspiring and you are a beautiful soul! Best wishes always, Carol
Congratulations, Ms Drake! I love you, NYT, but this was long overdue. Better late than never, I guess.
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It took the New York Times only 167 years to put an African-American woman on the masthead?
Congratulations Ms. Drake.
Well done, Monica. Absurdly long delayed, but well done, NYT, too.
NYT has a staff with Charles, Frank, Paul, Gail, and you - yesterday seems decades away, but the Misogynist-in-Chief may not understand what's happening..
The Prez seems worried by women in general and especially lovely ones, and most especially lovely, bright women of color. He still thinks of women as objects to eye, to grab, to toy with. He thinks it's 6 or 7 decades ago. Poor fellow.
He's scared of today's high-achieving women, especially women with your talents, education, intelligence, endeavour, and skin color. He can't figure out why you serve a great paper and its readers, and not his schoolboy carnality.
Wait until he sees how tomorrow will look, when every day is your day in the sun. And his type in the shadows.
You go, girl.
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Congratulations, Ms. Drake. More power to you and may your star continue to rise. As for the paper, it feels a little bit like they are patting themselves on the back for something that should have happened a long time ago.
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NYT why did it take so long to put an African-American woman on the print masthead? Could you please write a story about that?
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I love 52 Places to Go! Cool to find out who was behind it.
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Congratulations. It's about time.
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The Times better watch out, someone as talented and creative as Ms. Drake will have media companies around the world vying for her. And what a wonderful role model she is to women of all races, everywhere. Oh, and she knows Dave Chappelle? That makes her way more cool than anyone else on the masthead.
Congratulations to Ms. Drake, and we look forward to your work!
But wow, NYT. It's stunning and appalling that this is the first time this milestone is being reached. For the sake of the paper and that of your readers, please pick up the pace on the next diversifying firsts and seconds in your inner circle.
Congratulations -- I sincerely hope more women (and men) of color are moving up in the world of journalism. One comment, though -- I clicked into the Surfacing site and noticed that the header says "New York Times visual reporters Malin Fezehai, Walter Thompson Hernandez, Stephen Hiltner and more contributors cover the world’s undiscovered communities."
Which begs the question, "undiscovered by whom?" I'm surprised to see such (elite-centric? colonial? unwoke?) language used in the present day. These communities may be little-known, or relatively isolated, or not on the itinerary of group tours, but they definitely are not undiscovered.
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Brains. Talent. Beauty.
The Trifecta!
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I hope we can read about the third, fourth, fifth... soon. Maybe an article on the person who decided to promote her too. What's the process...?
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Great!!
Now let us see a black woman as a regular columnist.
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BOOM!!!!!
Absolutely. Long long overdue.
Skin color would only matter if one feels either that 1. blacks are inferior and she is an exception or 2. NYT has discriminated against blacks for long that this isa breakthrough.
Other than that, what's the news in skin color?
The first thing I saw when I scrolled down to the article was dazzling. Then I read the article, double dazzling. I had a big grin on my face when Ms. Drake recounted that "One of my big victories was finding a typo." As a copy editor, I know the feeling. My boss used to call that a delicious typo when it was spotted in a proper name. I'm looking forward to reading the Surfacing columns. Congratulations, Ms. Drake!
To Ms. Drake, congratulations.
To the NYT, better late than never.
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What an amazing woman! As a black journalist, I am so inspired to push forward and achieve my dreams.
Also, I am officially a fan of the Surfacing project!
Mrs. Drake is Awesome!
and yes, #BlackGirlMagic
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Somebody has to be first, but it's 2018. It's about darned time, NYTimes. Congratulations Monica.
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Are you kidding? The Feels Great part is whats wrong. The first ??? What is wrong with you, who have you missed?
Congratulations, Ms. Drake!
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Although I understand that Ms. Drake is the first African American woman on the print masthead and that it is an important milestone, I wish we lived in a society where the article focused on her excellent credentials. In other words, I wished we lived in a totally color blind society where we noticed folks more for their talents than the category in which they could be slotted. Ms. Drake seems so extraordinarily well qualified that she would have been hired under any circumstance. It is just unfortunate that the lead is that she is the first African American woman on the masthead instead of the NYT just hired an extraordinary new editor for a breaking department.
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Thanks for all of your fantastic contributions Ms. Drake, including helping the NY Times go digital! Excited for the adventures ahead!!
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Congratulations! Long overdue.
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Just took too darn long, in my opinion. Congratulations, Ms. Drake!! Continued success. Now for a Puerto Rican woman on the masthead...any color will do.
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Congratulations on your promotion. Still, I am beyond bothered that you would be the first Africa-American woman in this position. I find it difficult to believe others before you were not qualified. Is it 1918 or 2018? Do better New York Times. It's about time.
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I love 52 places to go. I will look for your new project, Surfacing. Congratulations.
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With the appointment of Monica Drake to assistant managing editor and a place on the Times' masthead, the Gray Lady truly — and at long last — enters the twenty-first century. Congratulations!
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It's taken too long, much too long.
Still, congratulations Ms. Drake!!
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Congratulations, Ms. Drake!
Now, I must ask, why is it that out of the Times’s 13 regular op ed columnists, only 2 are women? I’m a big believer in hiring on merit too, but are there really only 2 women in the country qualified for that prestigious platform?
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Doesn't Michelle Goldberg make 3, after Gail Collins and Maureen Dowd?
Only 2 women? Don't forget Linda G. on law, Michelle on politics, Maureen on whatever she's thinking about, and Gail, Molly Ivens redux, as well as all the invited op-ed writers who are women. My mother isn't - she is smiling somewhere. My daughter is kvelling in Vancouver, where she is a vice-prez of a large charitable group. My sister is smiling in Florida where she is an octogenarian vocal defender of women's control of their bodies, and my partner, who has succeeded in computer programming and in banking is happy in Edmonton. My sadness is for all the fine, talented women who should have ,,, oh, well. I hear them singing, America Singing, as Whitman wrote: They are joyful, singing in a hundred tongues. What a day, Ellininca.
Thank you for the correction, DSM14. I do now see that Michelle Goldberg has been added as a columnist, so now there are 3 women opinion columnists out of 14, rather than 2 out of 13.
Congratulations, Monica. The "print masthead"'s gain, however, is the travel section's loss. I've been among your fans since you landed in your previous assignment, and very much appreciated your approach, direction and changes. You'll be missed in that role, but I have no doubt you'll be elevating all else you touch.
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This is wonderful. This is not so wonderful. This something the paper should have been doing years ago; putting exceptional people in exceptional jobs without reference to their gender, sexual orientation or race, instead of patting itself on its back for something so long overdue. It is 2018. Wonderful for Ms Drake; sad that this exceptional woman has to be a poster child for The New York Times because of our racist culture and not because she simply deserved it.
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Congrats to Monica Drake; this is long overdue and her perspective will enrich the Times. But really weird that 2 of 3 top questions were about Dave Chappelle - what does that have to with anything? Is this "Entertainment Tonight"? I'd like to see the Times rise above our country's endless fascination with celebrities, especially in a piece like this.
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Congrats on the promotion and accomplishment, Ms. Drake.
But I'm at a loss to see what race or gender has to do with this at all. It appears she is going to be overseeing productions that are not "hard news." No problem with that, but nothing to be celebrated. I would bat an eye if a black female was named the Times' first Moscow bureau chief or something like that.
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"Surfacing" looks like a spirited reincarnation of the kind of story Charles Kuralt used to do. From what Monica Drake says about it, her series probably will be far better than the curdled stuff CBS News presents in its own "On the Road" version 2.0. Brava, Monica!!
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Congratulations to the new "special projects" person?
Ms. Drake is obviously immensely talented: something the NYT apparently picked up during her initial internship.
She lauds her mentors, at the NYT and elsewhere. She is tasked with digital projects and Olympic coverage, both of which must be critical for the NYT, with one helping shape its future.
At the same time, one hopes that her illustrious position is one that will give her the opportunity to get enough meat to make a real difference (continue to make a real difference) at the NYT. "Special projects" are great. But hopefully she and her mentors are also mapping out what continuity she can grab to maximize benefits to the NYT and to continued progression of her career. Wishing her all the very best!
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Finally news that makes me smile!
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I’m glad Ms. Drake feels great, but I feel furious.
Let us celebrate Ms. Drake’s well-deserved achievement, but never stop recognizing that this newspaper’s much-vaunted liberalism is not and has not been backed up by substantive changes to an operating model that continues to elevate the voices of well-off white people over and above everybody else.
Ms. Drake’s hiring is a good step, but an insufficient one.
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Good for you! Congratulations! It sounds as if you are ready and able to tackle the job.
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Wonderful. Welcome to this great newspaper and great city.
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Love to hear this. I do hope we can get you to come to urban schools in the area to talk about the important of writing and education.
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Congratulations!!! Why were two questions devoted to Dave Chappelle? I wanted to hear more about Monica!!!
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Congrats Monica. Way to go!
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Congratulations, Monica! I loved reading about the transition you witnessed from midnight printing into a 24x7, digitally-driven organization. Sounds like you've worked incredibly hard to get where you are, and are now one more reason the NYT is the highest quality news organization on the planet. Phenomenal!
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So proud of you, Monica, as would be all of your great- and great-greats and beyond. You are a tribute to the talent and ability they sacrificed. Looking forward to 52 Places.
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This is wonderful news. But the question about homies? Really? Not a worthy question for our new editor. Don't care about Chappelle. Very interested in the anthropology degree and how that informs being a really good editor- the part about listening. bravo!
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Beg to differ Monica. Part of the fun of being black in America (a phrase you don’t read often and certainly not often enough!)is the way black professionals like my wife can shift linguistic gears and play with different aspects of black life in America. There’s nothing wrong with “homie” in the usage you quote. It’s mildly ironic and definitely loving. Relax! Join the fun!
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I think the frustration is that the focus was on Chappelle, not on Ms. Drake. One question would have done it for me.
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I met you on your first day at your first job here in NY and we became fast friends. In our group of friends (The Clique) you were the youngest but I think everyone knew you’d be the one to soar to great heights. I am so happy to have been able to watch you do just that in the past 20 something years, while remaining essentially the same good, self-effacing human being that you always have been. Congratulations, Monica! And again, wow. Wow!
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Looks like you're having a blast and making a difference. Nice!
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Congrats Monica Drake. Learn from Pres. Obama, a leader for all and mentor to Blacks.
Stress your qualifications and not your race. Hillary Clinton did not do that. She stressed her gender over her qualifications.
As a result Obama served two terms as President and Hillary none.
Learn from Obama and not from Hillary and you will have a long and successful reign at the NY Times.
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This is a wonderful piece! Congratulations Monica Drake!!!
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Congrats, and keep up the great work, you do your forebears family, friends and supporters proud.
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Welcome, well done, and congratulations! And that smile! Who wouldn't love that smile?
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An interesting life story. At some point in our society it will not be necessary to do this type of interview.
And another point, and I am not stereotyping although maybe I am. Your name would never make me think that you are black. I would have just thought that you are a woman who has made the masthead of the print edition I read every day.
Congrats.
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