New York Times Hires Buzzfeed Lead Reporter on Steele Dossier to Cover ‘Right-Wing Media’

The New York Times announced Thursday that it has hired Buzzfeed News’s Ken Bensinger to “pioneer a new beat” covering right-wing media — the same Ken Bensinger, the Times omits in its announcement, who first reported the Steele Dossier.

New York Times Politics Editor David Halbfinger declared in a splashy release that Bensinger would join the “democracy team” on the Politics Desk, covering right-wing media as his full-time beat.

Big hire. https://t.co/876AUdfXRy

— David Halbfinger (@halbfinger) August 18, 2022

The statement provides an exhaustive list of topics and stories Bensinger has covered — from campaign finance, to “political disinformation,” to the Oath Keepers’ finances. Curiously absent, however, is any mention of Bensinger being the lead reporter on the uncritical Buzzfeed story that injected the infamous Steele Dossier into the public conversation in 2017, with the headline: “These Reports Allege Trump Has Deep Ties To Russia.”

The Dossier was eventually revealed to be full of false information, after it was used as the basis for the “Russia collusion” investigation that consumed the majority of former President Donald Trump’s term, ultimately proving to be a hoax.

Bensinger never reported any follow-up stories on the topic of the Dossier, according to his byline on Buzzfeed, after it was confirmed to be disinformation.

The bulk of his work following that story focused on foreign workers being employed at Trump properties.

Halbfinger writes of Bensinger’s work:

That digging was terrific preparation for Ken’s new beat, filled as it is with people who reject mainstream narratives and question the institutions that hold up our democracy. Understanding the way information is developed, circulated and absorbed on the right is vital at this precarious moment, and requires a healthy measure of patience, empathy and understanding along with investigative chops, skepticism and toughness.

Halbfinger did not immediately respond to Breitbart News’s request for comment, asking why he concealed Bensinger’s involvement in what would be the biggest story of his career, and why he believes the purveyor of such a sinister item of disinformation would be a good fit for the Times’ “democracy team.”

Donald Trump Jr, who found himself at the center of the “Russia collusion” investigation, told Breitbart News the hire represents the Times‘ refusal to correct course after it spent the duration of the Trump administration peddling the Russia hoax and a myriad of other attack pieces scant on facts.

“This is just another example of the New York Times making clear that they have zero interest in covering conservatives fairly. Unfortunately, the former ‘paper of record,’ is more interested in hiring radical left-wing activists who act like rapid response staffers for the Democratic National Committee, than actual unbiased journalists,” Trump told Breitbart News.

Emma-Jo Morris is the Politics Editor at Breitbart News. Email her at ejmorris@breitbart.com or follow her on Twitter.