Former executive editor Marty Baron has said that the future of The Washington Post is uncertain, despite the newspaper having won 11 Pulitzer Prizes and expanded its newsroom to more than 1,000 journalists during his tenure.
“The aspirations of this news organisation are diminished,” The Guardian quoted Baron as saying in an interview.
“I think that’ll translate into fewer subscribers. And I hope it’s not a death spiral, but I worry that it might be,” Baron added.
His remarks came as Matt Murray, the Post’s current editor in chief, sought to reassure staff that the organisation has a plan to survive and grow, even as it carried out one of the largest layoffs in the history of the US newspaper industry.
Nearly one-third of the entire company – which stood at 2,500 employees in late 2023, before a round of buyouts – was axed.
The layoffs have hollowed out large sections of the newsroom, including the closure of the sports department and deep cuts to teams covering local news, style and international affairs. The paper’s audio and video units, already weakened by earlier reductions, were further hit, while commercial teams were also downsised.
As a result, the Post has emerged as a much smaller organisation, raising concerns among journalists invested in its legacy that it may now operate with reduced ambition at a time when the media industry is grappling with financial pressures and heightened hostility from US President Donald Trump and his allies.
Trump frequently targets news outlets and pressures regulators against media he opposes. Amid a tumultuous period in US history, outlets like CBS News — now owned by the Trump-aligned Ellison family — and newspapers such as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution have faced multiple rounds of layoffs.
Baron, who led The Washington Post for eight years until 2021, praised Jeff Bezos’s leadership of the paper in his 2023 memoir. But Baron now says, “he’s not the owner he was.”
He links the shift to Trump’s re-election in November 2024 and Bezos’s apparent desire to stay in the president’s good graces to protect his other ventures, including Amazon and Blue Origin.
“I think the most important thing that’s changed is that Donald Trump is back in the White House, and he clearly would seek vengeance against his political enemies,” Baron was quoted as saying.
“I understand why Bezos might fear the consequences of that. I understand that he would fear that Trump would deny contracts to Amazon and deny contracts to Blue Origin.
“But I think that the Post is important, too, and it’s even more important than those other enterprises to American democracy. I firmly believe that Bezos is prioritising his other business efforts over the Washington Post.”
Publisher faces backlash
Much of the blame for the layoffs at The Washington Post has fallen on publisher Will Lewis, hired by Jeff Bezos in late 2023 to help turn the newspaper around. Lewis did not appear during a Zoom call with employees Wednesday morning, a move that some found unusual.
“I think he was awol today, and I think he’s been awol in the past,” said Baron. “He’s kind of the invisible publisher. When you announce something as traumatic as what they announced today, shouldn’t the publisher be on the call?”
Donald E. Graham, who sold the Post to Bezos in 2013, broke his usual silence on the paper’s current ownership. “It’s a bad day,” he wrote on Facebook. “I am sad that so many excellent reporters and editors – and old friends – are losing their jobs. My first concern is for them; I will do anything I can to help.”
During Wednesday’s virtual meeting, Murray said the Post’s politics and government team would remain its largest reporting group, with coverage continuing in national news, science, technology, climate, and business, albeit with smaller staffs.
As a leaner organisation focused mainly on politics, campaigns, and the federal government, the Post now faces stiff competition from outlets like Politico, Axios, and smaller upstarts such as Punchbowl News.
“I have no clue what their strategy was or is,” The Guardian quoted Jim VandeHei, a former Post journalist and co-founder of Politico and Axios, as saying.
“We do: be useful, indispensable [and] illuminating to people who care deeply about government, AI, business and the information ecosystem. And then match the business expertise with our editorial excellence.”
The paper also lost hundreds of thousands of subscribers in fall 2024 after Bezos abruptly shelved its planned endorsement of Kamala Harris and narrowed the opinion pages to a focus on “personal liberties and free markets.”
There are concerns that Wednesday’s cuts could trigger further cancellations and financial strain, not to mention significant severance costs.
Robert Allbritton, former owner of Politico, said he was saddened by the layoffs.
“These are some wonderful journalists who have produced quality work,” he told The Guardian.
“They will land at other publications, but the disruption is painful and not their fault. These layoffs signal that Jeff wants to move the Post back to sustainability. I’m hopeful that once the Post regains its financial footing that Jeff will continue as a responsible owner of one of the most important brands in media.”
Some Post veterans have urged Bezos to sell the paper. The union representing most employees said Wednesday, “If Jeff Bezos is no longer willing to invest in the mission that has defined this paper for generations, and serve the millions who depend on Post journalism, then the Post deserves a steward that will.”
Baron highlighted the central challenge of any potential sale: “To whom?”
With inputs from agencies
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