Breaking: The Washington Post
The flagship newspaper of the nation’s capital is breaking, cutting a third of its staff as owner Jeff Bezos struggles to make it a viable business.
Billionaire Jeff Bezos, owner of The Washington Post, trimmed a lot of fat at the paper yesterday, laying off a third of its staff and shuttering several departments entirely. It’s like he put the newspaper on Ozempic. Or is that Bez-Ozempic?
My dad jokes and I will be here all week — assuming no layoffs here.
During a Zoom meeting on Wednesday, WaPo Executive Editor Matt Murray announced “a broad strategic reset with a significant staff reduction” — i.e., layoffs. Other changes include the closure of the sports and books sections and a restructuring of local and international coverage. In a letter, Murray explained that the plan is to “place The Washington Post on a stronger footing” and address the “rapidly changing era of new technologies and evolving user habits.” He acknowledged that this follows “multiple rounds of cost cuts and buyouts.”
In 2024, Bezos forbade the paper’s editorial page from endorsing Kamala Harris in the presidential election. A few months later, he made big changes to balance the opinion page. Because the paper’s left-wing audience couldn’t tolerate not being told what they already believed, it wasn’t long before hundreds of thousands of people canceled their subscriptions. The subscriber base had been dwindling since 2021.
Yet the paper’s journalists suffer an affliction common to newsrooms in the entire antique Leftmedia. Like medieval kings, they justify their reign by invoking the divine right of journalists, as if their powers of reporting came directly from God himself — or from whatever external force they believe in. (Yes, God is sovereign, by the way; the theology is not my point.)
A business has to make money, though, or it will eventually cease to exist. In 2024, the paper lost $100 million, which isn’t chump change even for a billionaire owner. Heck, Bezos bought the Post for $250 million in 2013. Men don’t become or stay rich by flushing money down the toilet.
Journalists don’t always seem to understand that. For example, former Executive Editor Martin Baron spouted off this ignorant nonsense about Bezos: “He let his business interests get in the way of his management of the Post.” Dear Mr. Baron, read that again, slowly.
The Atlantic melodramatically dubbed the layoffs “The Murder of The Washington Post.”
Clay Travis hit the nail on the head, saying, “The Washington Post made its business contingent on far left wing subscribers who hated Trump & when Bezos became embarrassed by the far left wing product that created, he tried to fix it by moving closer to the center. But the Post’s subscribers revolted, crushing the business.”
The Washington Post has always been left-wing, but its descent into madness began with derangement over the rise of Donald Trump. His first term began with the paper choosing a slogan for the first time in its history: “Democracy Dies in Darkness.”
Akilah Johnson, one of the reporters who was laid off yesterday, illustrated where that journey ended up: “In 2021, I was hired by @washingtonpost to cover health disparities & explore the way racism & social inequality affects health. 4 months ago, I became the generations’ reporter exploring how health is experienced by different pple across the life course. Today, I was laid off.”
I think, without meaning to, she just explained why she was laid off.
I think, without meaning to, she just explained why she was laid off. https://t.co/FwXILtV8jF
— Nate Jackson | Patriot Post (@NatriotJackson) February 5, 2026
Major layoffs have plagued the media for the last couple of years. In early 2024, I wrote about a spate of layoffs at several outlets. Last year, 136 newspapers closed entirely. This week, in addition to the Post, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution announced staff reductions representing 15% of its workforce.
The demise of the Leftmedia is wonderful, but it’s not all roses and sassafras. The lunatic left-wing New York Times is booming. It’s the nation’s most-subscribed paper with 10.3 million, and it’s not even close. The Wall Street Journal is second at 3.8 million.
The bright side? Now in our 30th year, we in our humble shop are determined to close that gap, though we could use your support.
