Originally Posted by
Blumie
Why is that so shocking or awkward? Wells doesn't speak for the NYTimes anymore than any other critic does. If A.O. Scott pans a particular movie, does that mean that no one from the Times should go see it?
Not the same thing. Assuming the staff knew the party was from the NY Times, and if they had just read the review, it would certainly make things awkward, regardless of whether the food critic spoke for the entire paper or not.