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Over 400 staff members at the Washington Post have sent a letter to Jeff Bezos asking for a meeting with him during a time of widespread concern about the future of the newspaper.
The letter, signed by top journalists and correspondents and sent on Tuesday evening, pleads for Bezos, who is known to rarely visit the Post’s office in Washington, to meet in person with leaders at the office.
“We are deeply alarmed by recent leadership decisions that have led readers to question the integrity of this institution, broken with a tradition of transparency, and prompted some of our most distinguished colleagues to leave, with more departures imminent,” the letter reads. NPR first reported the letter.
“This is about retaining our competitive edge, restoring trust that has been lost, and re-establishing a relationship with leadership based on open communication,” it continues.
The letter claims these concerns are unrelated to Bezos’ recent decision to end its endorsement of US presidential candidates, which the letter writers acknowledge as “the owner’s prerogative”.
The Post lost 250,000 subscribers, or 10% of its subscription base, following its decision not to endorse. This reportedly was a massive contributor to the paper losing a whopping $100m in 2024, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Digital visitors for the Washington Post website are also down, dropping from 114 million in November 2020 to 54 million in November 2024.
The plea from staff also comes a week after the Post laid off roughly 100 employees, a sign of the paper’s financial struggles. The cuts amounted to roughly 4% of the publication’s staff.
The company’s chief executive, Will Lewis, has been at the center of unease among staffers since he took his position in November of 2023.
The newsroom’s top editor, Sally Buzbee, stepped down in June after Lewis decided to reorganize the newsroom. Robert Winnett, the editor chosen by Lewis to replace her, withdrew from consideration after backlash from staff.
Several opinion staff writers resigned after the announcement that the Post would no longer endorse presidential candidates. Ann Telnaes, a Pulitzer-winning cartoonist, quit the paper after it refused to print her cartoon depicting billionaires bowing to trump.
The Post endorsed every Trump nominee for confirmation, except for Pete Hegseth for Department of Defense, Tulsi Gabbard for director of national intelligence, Russell Vought for Office of Management and Budget, and Robert F Kennedy Jr for health secretary.
