Meet the new face of readership retention at Greenwich Time — former first lady Barbara Bush.
An obituary published in the Hearst Connecticut Media-owned daily recently caught the eye of the 88-year-old Bush, riling up the political left and setting the Internets ablaze.
In lieu of flowers, Bush cancelled her subscription to the New York Times, as the family of the deceased Leonard M. Smith requested in the Jan. 26 obit.
During an interview with Fox News Channel’s Steve Doocy this week, Bush declared her disdain for the “Grey Lady” when asked about a recent Maureen Dowd column handicapping her son Jeb Bush’s White House prospects against Hillary Rodham Clinton in 2016. Bush went on to reveal that she was done with the New York Times.
“Did you hear about this man who said don’t send flowers, don’t send donations to anything, cancel your New York Times subscription? So I did,” Bush told Doocy.
Smith died Nov. 27, 2013, at the age of 86 in Florida. The World War II veteran had deep roots in both Greenwich — the boyhood home of former President George H.W. Bush — and Barbara Bush’s native Rye, N.Y. The first couple was introduced during a dance at the Round Hill Club.