Jeff Bezos tells upset Washington Post staffers that standards won’t change under embattled publisher
Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos expressed support for embattled CEO Will Lewis in a memo to staffers on Tuesday.
The billionaire Amazon founder, who purchased the Washington Post for $250 million in 2013, has seen drama unfold inside his newsroom in recent weeks after Lewis, who took over this year, announced earlier this month that executive editor Sally Buzbee would step down. Post reporters and their allies in the media have since reported a series of unflattering stories about Lewis, who has taken heat from employees over his journalism ethics, a lack of diversity at the company and his "three newsrooms" plan.
Lewis, who has been blunt with staffers about the paper’s financial issues, has attempted to quell the drama, but Bezos chimed in directly to declare none of the changes would impact the paper’s journalistic standards and ethics.
"Team -- I know you’ve already heard this from Will, but I wanted to also weigh in directly: the journalistic standards and ethics at The Post will not change," Bezos told Washington Post staffers in a memo obtained by Fox News Digital.
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"To be sure, it can’t be business as usual at The Post. The world is evolving rapidly and we do need to change as a business. With your support, we’ll do that and lead this great institution into the future," he continued. "But, as the newsroom leaders who’ve been shaping and guiding our coverage, you also know our standards at The Post have always been very high. That can’t change — and it won’t."
Bezos insisted employees have his "full commitment on maintaining the quality, ethics, and standards" they believe in.
"A huge thank you for continuing to do the work that makes us all proud, and makes this institution so important," Bezos wrote, signing the note "Jeff."
Lewis held a heated meeting with staffers earlier this month on the morning after Buzbee’s exit was announced. The paper lost roughly $77 million in 2023 and has shed 50% of its audience since 2020.
"We are going to turn this thing around, but let’s not sugarcoat it. It needs turning around," Lewis said. "We are losing large amounts of money. Your audience has halved in recent years. People are not reading your stuff. Right. I can’t sugarcoat it anymore."
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Lewis has announced that former Wall Street Journal editor-in-chief Matt Murray will fill Buzbee's seat through the 2024 election cycle before transitioning to manage a new Post newsroom division focused on service and social media journalism.
Robert Winnett, the deputy editor of The Telegraph Media Group, will then take over Murray's position and oversee the paper's key coverage areas. David Shipley will remain the editorial page editor as part of the three-part newsroom restructuring.
Buzbee was offered one of the newly created positions, but she declined.
Post employees have expressed concern about the lack of diversity among the Post's leadership, as Lewis and his three top deputies are all White men.
Fox News Digital’s David Rutz contributed to this report.