Karen Attiah says she won’t return to Washington Post, chooses new chapter after winning fight

After 11 years at the newspaper, Attiah says returning would mean sacrificing the freedom and institutional support she needs to do her job.

Journalist Karen Attiah is moving on from The Washington Post, despite winning her fight to get her job back after the newspaper fired her over commentary following the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk.

In a Nov. 8 essay published on her Substack newsletter, “The Golden Hour,” Attiah announced that she has accepted a settlement with the newspaper and will not return to the newsroom where she spent 11 years as an editor and columnist.

“I have decided not to return to what The Washington Post has become,” Attiah wrote, explaining that the decision came after considerable reflection about her future and the direction of the publication.

Attiah was fired in September 2025 after publishing commentary examining America’s gun violence problem and what she described as the country’s willingness to extend grace to white men who espouse hatred and violence. The newspaper reportedly terminated her employment via email the following day, accusing her of gross misconduct and describing her as a threat to colleagues.

With support from the Washington-Baltimore News Guild and other advocates, Attiah challenged her termination. In August 2026, an independent arbitrator ruled that the newspaper did not have just cause to fire her, ordering her reinstatement and full back pay.

The victory was particularly significant to Attiah, who was the last full-time Black columnist in the newspaper’s Opinions section. In her essay, she characterized the ruling as an important moment for labor rights, free speech and Black journalists who have faced diminishing representation in newsrooms.

However, winning her job back did not necessarily mean she wanted it back.

Attiah said she ultimately realized that returning would not guarantee the editorial independence and institutional support she needed to continue doing the work she valued.

During her tenure, she wrote about race, gender, culture and global human rights. She also worked with Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi before his murder in 2018.

While expressing gratitude to those who supported her fight, Attiah made clear that she is ready for what comes next.

“Forward ever, backward never,” she concluded.