The Washington Post is one of the most storied organizations in American journalism. But it is in crisis, losing reporting talent, suffering a loss of readers and facing a staff rebellion against publisher Will Lewis.
The Post has been swamped by “one debacle after another,” since Lewis took charge of the newspaper a year ago, said NPR. The decision by the owner (and billionaire Amazon founder) Jeff Bezos to cancel the Post’s traditional presidential endorsement in an apparent effort to placate newly-inaugurated President Donald Trump was a huge blow, causing “hundreds of thousands of subscribers” to cancel their subscriptions. Layoffs have led to fewer journalists on the job, contributing to plummeting morale that led some of the survivors to flee for jobs elsewhere. A “clear vision” to put the Post back on track to journalistic and financial success remains “elusive,” said NPR.
More than 400 Post staffers last week sent a letter to Bezos asking him to “get personally involved to turn the paper back in the right direction,” said Poynter. The staffers said in the letter they were “deeply alarmed by recent leadership decisions” that caused readers to bolt. They asked for a face-to-face meeting with Bezos in the service of “restoring trust that has been lost.” Bezos did not immediately reply.
What did the commentators say?
Bezos has “plunged my beloved Washington Post into darkness,” said Eleanor Clift at The Daily Beast. Post reporters have done a “first-rate job covering Trump,” but Bezos’ decision to pacify the incoming president (with the non-endorsement, as well Amazon’s $40 million expense on a documentary about Melania Trump) has raised the specter their journalism could be “compromised by anything that could damage Bezos’ financial interests.” Bezos’ decision to get on Trump’s good side “has ramifications far beyond the Post newsroom.”
If the Post is to remain viable, it must “retain, not lose, its talent,” Margaret Sullivan said at The Guardian. It’s not “unreasonable to question” whether the Post can maintain its independence in the Trump era, and “Bezos may not care.” But if he does care, he should “show up — soon” in the newsroom to talk to reporters, and recommit to the “importance of editorial freedom.” He should also dump Lewis, who has overseen a rapid decline in the Post’s standing. For the sake of both journalism and “democracy itself, I sure hope he finds a way to do it.”
What next?
On the eve of Trump’s inauguration, the Post unveiled a new mission statement: “Riveting Storytelling for All of America.” The slogan is intended as an “internal rallying point for employees,” said The New York Times. And the paper’s chief strategy officer has announced a goal of reaching 200 million paying users. That’s an audacious target: The Post currently has fewer than 3 million digital subscribers.