By Alexandra Bruell

Bari Weiss launched the Free Press after growing disillusioned with what she described as a narrow orthodoxy at the New York Times.

Now she is back at a mainstream media outlet. And this time, she is running the show.

Forty-one-year-old Weiss was named editor in chief of CBS News on Monday, with the broadcaster's parent Paramount Skydance also buying the Free Press.

In an interview, Weiss said she and Paramount CEO David Ellison are aligned in their desire for "news that reflects reality" and journalism that "doesn't seek to demonize, but seeks to understand."

Weiss, a Pittsburgh native who attended Columbia University and now lives in New York, is known for her outspoken support of Israel and strong takes on polarizing topics including gun rights, diversity and inclusion programs, American higher education and President Trump. She is a registered independent who at one point called herself "politically homeless," unrepresented by the two main U.S. parties.

She worked for various publications aimed at Jewish audiences, including Haaretz, the Forward and Tablet, before spending four years as an op-ed and book review editor at The Wall Street Journal. Weiss left the Journal in 2017 and joined the Times as an op-ed staff writer and editor, but later described an "illiberal environment" where she was the "subject of constant bullying by colleagues" who disagreed with her views, according to her 2020 resignation letter, which was posted publicly.

Weiss then started a newsletter that eventually grew into the Free Press, positioning the news and opinion site as a check on what she saw as the media's adherence to a "woke" ideology. The publication has blossomed since, and now touts more than 175,000 paying subscribers. It generates around $20 million in annual revenue, according to people familiar with the matter.

Weiss founded the Free Press with her wife, Nellie Bowles, who pens the humorous "TGIF" column, and with whom Weiss has one- and three-year-old children. Her sister Suzy Weiss, another Free Press co-founder, is also a reporter there.

An eloquent public speaker, Weiss has cemented a spot among wealthy executives and prominent personalities. She has attended the Allen & Co. conference in Sun Valley, Idaho -- where talks with Ellison heated up -- befriended playwright David Mamet, filmmaker Sam Levinson and comedian Bill Maher, and appeared on Glenn Beck's podcast.

Her own podcast, "Honestly with Bari Weiss," draws an eclectic mix of guests including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Woody Allen, NewsNation anchor Leland Vittert and Amanda Knox. In September, she interviewed Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett.

Weiss has positioned herself as an advocate for free speech, including by helping to found the University of Austin in 2021. The school, where Weiss has a seat on the board, pitches itself as "dedicated to the fearless pursuit of truth," with a focus on "open inquiry and civil discourse."

"Free speech should be defended for everyone, especially those that you passionately disagree with," Weiss said last month at an event hours after the shooting death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

The Free Press has built up an event business, with live debates on divisive topics such as the morality of picking and choosing a baby's genetic traits and U.S. foreign policy.

The publisher had a breakout moment after Oct. 7, 2023, appealing to readers hungry for an alternative to what they view as unfair characterizations of Israel and the war in Gaza in mainstream media.

Weiss had grand ambitions after leaving the Times, but has said she didn't quite know how to achieve them right away.

"You don't create an empire overnight. You have to take small territory, " she said in June on the podcast "Conversations with Coleman," which is produced by the Free Press.

Over the past few years, she has chipped away at that empire. "Master this one thing, make sure that you've killed it and maintained your standard of excellence and integrity," she said, "and then go on to capture the next hill."

Write to Alexandra Bruell at alexandra.bruell@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

October 06, 2025 12:00 ET (16:00 GMT)

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