Bari Weiss (born March 25, 1984) is an American journalist, columnist, opinion journalist, writer, and political commentator. She is the founder and editor-in-chief of The Free Press, a media outlet she launched in 2021, where she also hosts the podcast 'Honestly.' She previously worked as an op-ed and book review editor at The Wall Street Journal from 2013 to 2017 and later as an op-ed staff editor and writer on culture and politics at The New York Times from 2017 to 2020, resigning amid controversies over workplace culture. She is a regular columnist for the German newspaper Die Welt, starting March 1, 2021. Weiss is known for her polarizing positions on culture, politics, and Zionism, identifying as center-left and as a prominent Zionist, and is considered a key figure in the Intellectual Dark Web. She attended Columbia University, majoring in history and graduating in 2007. During her university years, she founded the Columbia Coalition for Sudan in response to the Darfur genocide, served as the founding editor of The Current—a campus magazine focused on politics, culture, and Jewish affairs—from 2005 to 2007, and produced the documentary 'Columbia Unbecoming,' which accused several professors of antisemitism. She has hosted events for organizations like the World Jewish Congress and is described as a controversy-stirring figure. As of 2025, she is slated to receive a key award from Tikvah.