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One of the first signs that the New York Times might be suffering from Mamdani Derangement Syndrome came last summer, when the paper, having recently pledged not to make endorsements in municipal elections, but evidently dismayed at the prospect that he might win the Democratic nomination, published an exceedingly contorted non-endorsement endorsement that urged New Yorkers to vote instead for Andrew Cuomo.
Mamdani won the nomination anyway, and the general election, and took office in January, and the Times has been diligently covering his administration ever since, documenting everything from his pied-à-terre tax to his wife's fashion sense. In this coverage, one particular theme has surfaced again and again: a focus on Mamdani's forthright criticism of Israel's conduct of the war in Gaza and its treatment of Palestinian citizens; the concern that produces among some Jewish New Yorkers; and the possibility that Mamdani's criticism of Israeli policies make Jewish New Yorkers less safe by contributing to an atmosphere of growing antisemitism.
From the headline "Israeli Government Accuses Mamdani of Antisemitism Over Canceled Orders" in January through "Disconnect Widens Between Mamdani and Pro-Israel Jewish Leaders" in May to "After Stabbings, a Rise in Jewish Fears and Questions for Mamdani" in July and "Rabbis Plead With Mamdani to Tone Down His Anti-Israel Messaging" earlier this month—to say nothing of the multitude of stories the paper wrung from its July interview with Mamdani in which he entertained the possibility of executing an outstanding UN arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for war crimes and crimes against humanity—the Times has been assiduously on the beat.