Marco Rubio instructs diplomats to use Times New Roman font, eliminating Biden-era DEI initiative

New York Post ^ | December 10, 2025 | Ryan King

[Labyrinthos]

Secretary of State Marco Rubio directed all diplomats to revert to using the Times New Roman typeface in official communications and criticized his predecessor for shifting to Calibri, a font deemed too woke for the Trump administration.

Two years ago, Rubio’s predecessor, Antony Blinken, switched to Calibri, a softer, simpler-shaped, and wider font than Times New Roman, in part to assist individuals with certain visual disabilities such as low vision and dyslexia.

[Labyrinthos]

This is the first I have heard that Calibri is "woke." As a lawyer, I only use Times New Roman for formal documents or when communicating with opposing counsel by letter. For me, the font is smaller and more difficult to visually process compared to other fonts of the same size. When drafting documents and spreadsheets, I use Calibri. For emails, I use Segoe UI. My least favorite font is Aptos, which is the new Microsoft default font.

[Spktyr]

More to the point, Calibri is actually harder for OCR software to parse than the evergreen Times New Roman.

[Gasshog]

Hell yeah, TNR Rocks!

[Jim W N]

Why is Calibri “woke”?

[GOPJ]

Newspapers usually have the best fonts for reading.. of course that came about because newsprint bleeds...

[Kleon]

It’s supposed to be more readable for dyslexics and people with poor vision.

[Flag_This]

I would have figured the Biden regime to use Comic Sans.

[Olog-hai]

The Biden regime liked it, so that certainly lends an element of wokeness. Also, the non-serif style looks very informal and unserious.

[MayflowerMadam]

“Why is Calibri ‘woke’?”

I don’t know if it’s woke, but it’s sans-serif, and it is harder to read than fonts with serif. The serif fonts move you eye along better than the stark sans-serif.

I like Garamond myself, but Times New Romans is an old traditional font that makes sense.

[Flag_This]

"I'm Joe Biden. People call me Joe Biden."

[Hyman Roth]

Or Wing Ding.

[Flag_This]

I wish I’d thought of that!

[Vermont Lt]

That was my first thought. I am glad someone else thought it as well.

I used Calabri for a while, not thinking twice about it. I found it easier to read.

The good thing about the internet is you can set your own favorite typeface and most sites will roll with it. Putting out a release about what typeface is being used seems like an indicator of a slow news day.

[Jeff Chandler]

My, aren’t you a font of information.

[Inyo-Mono]

Two years ago, Rubio’s predecessor, Antony Blinken, switched to Calibri, a softer, simpler-shaped sans serif, and wider font typeface than Times New Roman,...

There I fixed it as a former professionl typesetter in the 1970s.

[Cletus.D.Yokel]

"I always sent correspondence in Arial."

[plain talk]

“For me, the font is smaller and more difficult to visually process compared to other fonts of the same size. When drafting documents and spreadsheets, I use Calibri.”

Ditto. The goal should be to pick styles based on ease of reading. Of course these things are subjective with personal preferences etc.

[BereanBrain]

how many angels could dance....

What a waste of time.

[Albion Wilde]

Publishers have tested readability many times. Serif faces (such as Times) are more readable than Sans Serif faces (such as Calibri).

Times New Roman:

[meadsjn]

I agree that Calibri is "woke".

It is a sans serif font that is ambiguous. You (and OCR) can distinguish between the numeral "1", the lower case "l", and the capital "I". There are other examples.

It's a PITA for human eyes to read, trying to rebuild meaning from context.