New York Magazine Reviews Writer Ross Barkan Amid Plagiarism Allegations

New York Magazine is reviewing the work of contract writer Ross Barkan after multiple instances of alleged plagiarism came to light. Barkan's article on conservative influencer Ben Shapiro, published earlier this week, was found to have copied opening paragraphs from a Washington Post piece by Drew Harwell. After social media criticism, the magazine updated the story to credit Harwell. NPR subsequently identified two more cases where Barkan lifted partial paragraphs from articles in The Intercept and Compact Magazine, with some passages containing identical 30-word sequences. Compact Magazine editor Matthew Schmitz publicly condemned the plagiarism. Barkan defended his methods, arguing that hyperlinks and author credits suffice as attribution. Journalism professor Edward Wasserman of UC Berkeley called the practice "a real embarrassment." Barkan, 36, ran for New York state senate in 2018 and has since been a prolific writer for Crain's New York, The New York Times, and others. He published two books last year and has a forthcoming book on New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani due in October. His latest novel, "Colossus," was released last month.