Bryan Johnson accuses the New York Times of trying to “construct a narrative” against him in new article

American entrepreneur Bryan Johnson has accused The New York Times of allegedly trying to "construct a narrative" about him in an upcoming article. Johnson alleged that the article is set to focus on his supposed weaponization of non-disclosure agreements.

In a series of posts on X dated February 25, Bryan Johnson mentioned that a reporter from The New York Times contacted him and his colleagues with her "fact-checking" questions regarding the article. He wrote:

"The New York Times is preparing to publish a hit piece on me. I found out this story is running because a reporter from NYT emailed me and my colleagues her “fact-checking” questions. This is standard practice before publishing a story. (...) This journalist is trying to construct a narrative about me."

According to Bryan Johnson's posts, the NY Times is after him to get hold of a "sensational story." The journalist behind the story allegedly wants to "take him down" as a target.

"I’m fortunate that I have social reach. But what’s really unfair is when this happens to people who have limited recourse. This isn’t just about me, this is about how the media manufactures reality. If a journalist is going to try and construct a narrative about any one of us, we should evaluate the foundation it’s built on," Johnson wrote on X.

The entrepreneur also explained his alleged relationship with his ex-girlfriend, who he claimed was trying to extract money from him by "recycling allegations" that have reportedly been rejected in two other legal forums. Johnson mentioned that his ex's allegations against him are related to the NY Times' upcoming story.

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Bryan Johnson accuses New York Times journalist of "reviving accusations" of his ex-girlfriend against him

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In his series of posts on X, Bryan Johnson claimed that one of his ex-girlfriends, who he did not name, had been trying to extract money from him through a "series of false allegations." However, she has failed to do so as two legal forums have previously ruled against her.

Johnson claimed that these two sources were the arbitrator, who ruled that Johnson's girlfriend's story contradicted itself, and the District Judge, who rejected her claims and sanctioned and fined her lawyers. The judge also allegedly ruled it out due to her “serious allegations [that were]…factually and legally baseless and frivolous.” Johnson added that his ex was ordered to pay $500,000 to him.

Bryan Johnson then claimed that the New York Times reporter is allegedly trying to revive his ex's allegations against him for clicks and views.

"A New York Times reporter is reviving accusations that were twice rejected by two legal forums, repackaging them for clicks. The journalist knows it’s easier to manipulate public opinion. This is how the media operates: if they can’t get you legally, they try to get you socially. They don’t need truth. They need narrative," he wrote on X.

Further, Bryan Johnson claimed that the reporter he was talking about was not being "ethical." He added that readers can take their call once the upcoming story is published and spoke about how journalism should be fair and factually correct.

In further posts, Johnson shared some of the alleged questions the New York Times journalist asked him and also shared his responses to the same. These questions ranged from the "opt-in" agreement at Blueprint, his personal and professional confidentiality agreements, the use of burner phones over the years, and the use of the app Signal for communication.

Johnson shared lengthy responses to all the alleged questions and also claimed the journalist's approach was not objective.

"The New York Times reporter is not investigating objectively. She is constructing a narrative using loaded language, insinuation, and guilt by association to make normal business practices (NDAs, security measures) seem suspicious. She misrepresents the intent behind agreements, ignoring their practical role in creating shared clarity," he wrote.

Bryan Johnson further elaborated on how "wealthy people" deal with "illegitimate tactics" used to extract money from them. When he shared details about his ex allegedly trying to extract money from him, he claimed multiple of his "wealthy friends" came forward with similar stories.

Speaking further about his ex allegedly sharing her "new and improved story" on social media, he added:

"Is it a coincidence that a year after the court proceedings concluded, my ex posted her new and improved story on social media within hours of the New York Times sending me "fact-checking" questions? Sadly, it seems to me that she’s using her true story of cancer to somehow justify her efforts to extract money from me."

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Bryan Johnson is the founder and ex-CEO of Kernel, an entrepreneur, and venture capitalist. He has also received widespread media attention for Project Blueprint—an attempt at anti-aging.