...his opinions are his own, not the NYT's...they're just doing their part in promoting "Free Speech".
As for Mr. Stephens' opinion on masks, I've just recently demonstrated to Baron how he lied when he claimed that the New England Journal of Medicine Editorial...which contained a full report with data...did not clearly show the benefit of masking in Massachusetts schools...and the same admonition applies to Mr. Stephens' claim.
Looks like you either haven't seen that thread, or have a memory retention issue.
Link: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bret_Stephens