The owner of The Washington Post, Jeff Bezos, is causing a stir after he shared a “significant shift” is coming to the publication.
Bezos noted that he shared a memo with the Post’s team on Wednesday morning, where he wrote, “I’m writing to let you know about a change coming to our opinion pages.”
“We are going to be writing every day in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets,” Bezos wrote about the shift coming to the opinion section. “We’ll cover other topics too of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others.”
He continued:
“There was a time when a newspaper, especially one that was a local monopoly, might have seen it as a service to bring to the reader’s doorstep every morning a broad-based opinion section that sought to cover all views. Today, the internet does that job.
I am of America and for America, and proud to be so. Our country did not get here by being typical. And a big part of America’s success has been freedom in the economic realm and everywhere else. Freedom is ethical — it minimizes coercion — and practical — it drives creativity, invention, and prosperity.”
Bezos then noted he offered David Shipley the opportunity to lead the “new chapter.” However, Shipley decided against taking that on.
“This is a significant shift, it won’t be easy, and it will require 100% commitment — I respect his decision,” Bezos wrote.
Read his full note below:
Per CNN’s Brian Stelter, Shipley wrote in a memo:
“It is with both sadness and gratitude that I write to let you know that I have decided to leave The Post. This is a conclusion I reached after reflection on how I can best move forward in the profession I love. I will always be thankful for the opportunity I was given to work alongside a team of opinion journalists whose commitment to strong, innovative, reported commentary inspired me every day — and was affirmed by two Pulitzer Prizes and two Loeb Awards in two short years. I consider it an honor to have been part of The Post. I will miss you all.”
Semafor’s Max Tani posted the Post’s CEO Will Lewis’ response to the announcement.
He praised the move as “recalibrated content strategy” for the opinion section.
“Earlier today, our owner Jeff published a note explaining The Washington Post’s recalibrated content strategy for our opinion section. I want to thank him for clearly and succinctly spelling out what we stand for at The Washington Post, and I will be so very proud for The Post to be known for its two key pillars: our belief in free markets and personal liberties,” Lewis wrote.
The Post’s chief economic reporter Jeff Stein reacted, writing on X that Bezo’s move is a “massive encroachment.”
He said it “makes clear dissenting views will not be published or tolerated there I still have not felt encroachment on my journalism on the news side of coverage, but if Bezos tries interfering with the news side I will be quitting immediately and letting you know.”
Additionally, a reporter who covers military affairs for the Post, Dan Lamothe, wrote on X, “As a hard-news journalist at The Washington Post, there’s no shortage of important news to cover. I will keep digging in. As I’ve stated before: Nothing changes. We ask hard questions and hold those in power to account. That’s the job, whether those in power like it or not.”
