New York Magazine has terminated the employment of political writer Ross Barkan following an investigation into his work that uncovered 67 instances of plagiarism.
The review was initiated after a reporter from The Washington Post observed significant similarities between the lead of a story Barkan wrote and a previous piece on the same subject he had published in May.
In a statement, New York Magazine confirmed that it found "67 Barkan columns that did not include proper attribution of language, information and/or sourcing." The magazine stated it is in the process of updating the affected articles with correct attribution and is "committed to addressing any other instances that come to light."
"Upon conclusion of the review, we have determined that we will no longer publish his column," the magazine said. "We regret that his work did not live up to our editorial standards, and apologize to the writers whose work was not appropriately attributed."
Barkan, a vocal supporter of New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, has faced additional allegations of plagiarism, which he has denied. Mamdani previously served as Barkan's campaign manager in a 2018 run for the New York State Senate.
Barkan acknowledged errors in his writing, stating, "In the course of nearly 250 pieces, there were times I should have been more careful with my citation. I’m sorry about these errors and will work to do better, more careful work in the future."
He also indicated that he is continuing to write for The Nation. Barkan's previous work includes bylines in The New York Times, and he has authored both fiction and non-fiction books. A book about Mayor Mamdani is reportedly forthcoming from Barkan.