Washington Post Editorial Board Member Jonathan Capehart Quits Over Georgia Voting Law Dispute

Jonathan Capehart, the only African American member of the Washington Post editorial board, quit in 2023 following a dispute with fellow opinion editor Karen Tumulty over an editorial on Georgia's 2021 voting law. The board deemed President Joe Biden's description of the law as 'Jim Crow 2.0' to be hyperbolic, a characterization Capehart disagreed with, feeling the editorial misrepresented his stance. Capehart expressed in his memoir that Tumulty's refusal to apologize and her comments on Biden's wording insulted him and 'robbed him of his humanity,' highlighting a deeper racial and experiential disconnect. This incident led Capehart to escalate the matter to human resources and senior staff before ultimately stepping down from the board. The controversy sparked criticism and mockery on social media, with some viewing Capehart's reaction as overly dramatic. Despite the backlash, Capehart remains a columnist at the Washington Post and continues to discuss issues of race and journalism.