Flora Peir

I’m Flora Peir, the news editor at The 19th. My reporters cover a wide range of topics, including LGBTQ+ issues, the courts, the military, maternal health, gun violence and beyond.

Two things defined the importance of following the news for me when I was a child in Texas: the student protests at Tiananmen Square, which transfixed immigrant families like mine from Taiwan, Hong Kong and other Chinese-speaking places, and my parents’ more prosaic need for the nightly weather report. Watching the newscast became my job, and news became my career. 

I’m a Texpat and graduate of Baylor University. I spent most of my career as an editor at The New York Times before joining The 19th in 2021. My family lives in New York.

I’ve had the privilege of working with and learning from brilliant journalists for more than 20 years. Today, I’m the most excited when my reporters bring me a story that would otherwise have slipped through the cracks. That kind of perspective is just one reason The 19th was created, and it’s part of the mission I get to amplify every day.

My work is free to consume and free to republish because of contributions from readers like you. A donation of $19 goes a long way toward sustaining our nonprofit newsroom.