NYT and NYT online are well-respected left-center publications. They are known for their factual reporting and variety of topics. The NYT op-eds are known to lean a little more left than NYT news, mostly due to editorial topic selection. This leads me to believe that the intended audience is the average American, particularly those with a left lean. The author writes in relatively simple terms that are easily read by the audience.

A fascinating viewpoint on social media, journalism, and information. There are some great implied questions for web designers hiding in here.