The New York Sun - Editorial Perspective and Reception

Editorial Perspective and Reception

Editor-in-chief Lipsky remarked that the paper's prominent op-ed page would champion "limited government, individual liberty, constitutional fundamentals, equality under the law, economic growth ... standards in literature and culture, education." Another goal, said Lipsky, was "to seize the local beat from which The New York Times was retreating as it sought to become a national newspaper." Stoll characterized the Sun's political orientation as "right-of-center", and an associate of Conrad Black predicted in 2002 that the paper would be neoconservative in its outlook.

The Sun's roster of columnists included many prominent conservative and neoconservative pundits, including William F. Buckley, Jr., Michael Barone, Daniel Pipes, and Mark Steyn.

The Sun supported President George W. Bush and his decision to launch the Iraq War in 2003, and courted controversy with an unsigned February 6, 2003, editorial arguing that protesters against the war should be prosecuted for treason. The paper also urged strong action against the perceived threat of the Islamic Republic of Iran and was also known for its forceful coverage of Jewish-related issues and advocacy for Israel's right of self-defense as evidenced in articles by pro-Israel reporter Aaron Klein.

The Sun established a readership niche for itself in New York. Alex Jones of the Joan Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy said, "It was a newspaper especially savored by people who don't like The New York Times, and there are plenty of those in New York." The paper also scored more scoops than would be expected for its size and Stephen B. Shepard, dean of the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism, said that its effective coverage of local news earned it a place in the New York media world. Accordingly, it was known as a good place for young, ambitious, scrappy reporters to start out.

According to Scott Sherman, writing in The Nation in April 2007, the Sun was "a broadsheet that injects conservative ideology into the country's most influential philanthropic, intellectual and media hub; a paper whose day-to-day coverage of New York City emphasizes lower taxes, school vouchers and free-market solutions to urban problems; a paper whose elegant culture pages hold their own against the Times in quality and sophistication; a paper that breaks news and crusades on a single issue; a paper that functions as a journalistic SWAT team against individuals and institutions seen as hostile to Israel and Jews; and a paper that unapologetically displays the scalps of its victims."

In the same article, Mark Malloch Brown, Kofi Annan's chief of staff at the United Nations, described the Sun as "a pimple on the backside of American journalism." According to Sherman, Brown "accepts that the paper's obsession with the UN translates into influence... he admitted the Sun "does punch way above its circulation number, on occasion." He goes on to say, "Clearly amongst its minuscule circulation were a significant number of diplomats. And so it did at times act as some kind of rebel house paper inside the UN. It fed the gossip mills and what was said in the cafeterias." Brown's insult was in the context of the Sun's reporting of the UN's central role in the Saddam Hussein Oil-for-Food scandal.

In May 2007, Adweek columnist Tom Messner called the Sun "the best paper in New York", noting that "The New York Sun is a conservative paper, but it gets the respect of the left. The Nation's April 30 issue contains an article on the Sun's rise by Scott Sherman that is as balanced an article as I have ever read in the magazine (not a gibe; you don't read The Nation for balance)."

Catholic commentator Richard John Neuhaus, writing in First Things, described the Sun as a paper that had, “made itself nearly indispensable for New Yorkers”.