Meghan McCain Blasts 'NYT' Over Swastika Accusations After Outlet Responds

Meghan McCain has lashed out at The New York Times over its controversial Sunday crossword puzzle that "looks like a swastika," after the newspaper spoke out in response to the social media backlash.

Images of the crossword were shared on Twitter, and a host of detractors also pointed out that the puzzle was published on the eve of the Jewish holiday of Hanukkah.

Former The View co-host McCain added her name to the list of critics on Monday, when she posted a screenshot of the puzzle on Twitter, writing: "On the first night of Hanukkah the anti-Israel New York Times issues a crossword puzzle that looks like a swastika. Can't make this s*** up. We see you @nytimes—we see you."

A number of McCain's followers agreed with her, while several other Twitter users pushed back on the conservative columnist's take, with one sharing a tweet from independent journalist Glenn Greenwald to counter her argument.

Amid mounting accusations that the NYT was prompting antisemitism, Greenwald wrote: "The NYT and their owners, the Sulzbergers, have always been and still are outspoken defenders of U.S. aid to Israel and anti-Semitism opponents. The notion that they're deliberately inserting swastikas into their crossword puzzles to subliminally promote Nazism is a bit irrational."

Despite the online speculation, Jordan Cohen, executive director of communications at the NYT, told Newsweek on Monday that the only intentional aspect of the crossword's appearance was its symmetry.

"This is a common crossword design: many open grids in crosswords have a similar spiral pattern because of the rules around rotational symmetry and black squares," Cohen said in a statement.

The NYT's Caitlin Lovinger wrote about the crossword in her column on Sunday, saying: "I love the geometry in this puzzle—so many stair steps!—and feel that it contributes to a certain evenness in the solve.

"Most of the entries that first caught my eye were of medium length—five or six letters long, bulky enough to give me lots of letters to use in chipping away at each corner—and the whole grid came together all at once," she said.

Ryan McCarty, the puzzle's constructor, said in the NYT that he was "thrilled" to have his first Sunday crossword in the publication.

"This grid features one of my favorite open middles that I've made as it pulls from a variety of subject areas. I had originally tried to make it work in a 15x15 grid but then decided to expand the grid out to a Sunday-size puzzle with a fun whirlpool shape. Hope you enjoy!"

Musician Kanye "Ye" West was permanently suspended from Twitter earlier this month for posting the Star of David, a symbol of Judaism, over the swastika, an ancient Hindu symbol that was later appropriated as an emblem of Nazi Germany.

In October, McCain spoke out against the wave of conservative support that West had received as he made a string of controversial statements and gestures, including his social media posts aimed at Jewish people.

"A reminder—antisemitic hate crimes are at their highest levels in America in decades," she wrote on Twitter alongside a screenshot of one of West's tweets.

"Antisemitic language, rhetoric and statements have become common place in American media, politics and pop culture," she went on. "It is now normal to hear casual antisemitic comments from sitting members of congress, media hosts, pop culture figures etc.—it is a cancer and it is everywhere.

"It is an existential threat to American life and our Jewish friends and family both in our country and outside of it. I have zero tolerance for this s***. Zero."

"This is poison and yet another example why this man and his behavior are trash," she continued, taking direct aim at West. "Conservatives always claim to hate celebrity but jump and get excited like a teenage girl at a Harry Styles concert any time any of them show our side attention.

"It is pathetic, we are supposed to be anti celebrity, and for the average working men and women—but I guess that went out the window years ago. This man is no icon, he has no wisdom I care to hear. Do not look the other way from this statement—it is the public hatred of Judaism and Jews and full f****** stop there is NO place for this anywhere."

Uncommon Knowledge

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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.

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