The Washington Post editorial board said Friday it will stop using the word Redskins when referring to Washingtons football team, joining a growing list of other commentators who have renounced the term because they believe it disparages Native Americans.
In a statement, the board said, While we wait for the NFL to catch up with public opinion and common decency we have decided not to use the slur ourselves except when it is essential for clarity or effect.
The editorial board is separate from the news-gathering side of the organization, which executive editor Marty Baron said will continue to use the teams moniker.
The Posts newsroom and the editorial page operate independently of each other, Baron said. Standard operating policy in the newsroom has been to use the names that established institutions choose for themselves. That remains our policy, as we continue to vigorously cover controversy over the teams name and avoid any advocacy role on this subject.
Tony Wyllie, the Redskins senior vice president of communications, said the announcement was no surprise.