According to reports, the Washington Post will be hit with a number of serious layoffs that will affect “dozens of employees.”
The news, first reported by Statuscomes amid an exodus of top talent and financial troubles for the paper.
One source said the layoffs will only affect the newspaper’s “business division,” while another said they “will be profound.”
Both said they will take place sometime this week as part of an ongoing effort to cut costs and consider possible replacements for the new Trump administration.
In September, the Postal Service laid off a quarter of its software department workforce, months after making massive acquisitions in an effort to avoid layoffs. Together, the events led to a loss of almost 300 employees within a year.
That month, the Post’s new publisher and CEO, William Lewis, issued a statement to the DC office staff detailing how dire the publication’s financial situation was, while promising, “We’re going to turn this thing around.” ‘
The former Financial Times reporter pointed out that the paper’s audience has “halved in recent years” and told his staff: “People don’t read your stuff.”
A series of exits followed, at a time when Washington is the biggest story in the world.
The Washington Post will reportedly be hit with a number of serious layoffs that will affect “dozens of employees.” Pictured: The Washington Post Building in Washington, DC
Jeff Bezos’ newspaper is reported to have lost $100 million by 2023 as it has lost more than half of its audience. The billionaire was seen on stage last month at an event for the Post’s rival, The New York Times
These problems were exacerbated when Bezos, 60, broke tradition and blocked The Post’s planned endorsement of Kamala Harris before the November election.
The move led to more than 250,000 readers immediately canceling their subscriptions, after which Bezos wrote an op-ed defending the decision.
In it, the world’s second-richest man cited growing “distrust” of the media, while Elon Musk, the world’s richest, supported the now president-elect.
“What presidential endorsements actually do is create a perception of bias,” he wrote at the time, after the Post had promoted a Democrat for decades.
‘A perception of non-independence. Ending it is a decision of principle, and it is the right decision.”
Three days earlier, Lewis issued a memo about the lack of approval – a first since 1988.
Beyond inciting a backlash, the October move has paved the way for post-election poaching as DC outlets are locked in a battle for scoops and talent.
Well-known political reporters Michael Scherer and Ashley Parker were recently hired by The Atlantic and editor-in-chief Matea Gold has gone to The New York Times.
William Lewis, the Post’s new CEO, has had a turbulent time since taking the helm of the paper a year ago. He minced no words when he spoke to staff in November about the dire financial situation, telling them: ‘People don’t read your stuff’
One source said the layoffs will only affect the newspaper’s “business division,” while another said they “will be profound.”
Both said they will take place sometime this week, as part of an effort to cut costs and consider possible replacements ahead of Donald Trump’s inauguration. The newspaper has recently lost a lot of talent following actions by both Bezos and the newspaper’s new boss
Her departure came after she quietly took over the role of top editor in favor of Matt Murray, a decision not yet announced by Lewis, insiders said.
This comes after three prominent op-ed writers – David Hoffman, Molly Roberts and Robert Kagan – quit following Bezos’ decision to endorse the op-ed.
White House correspondent Tyler Pager has also left, announcing last week that he would rejoin the New York Times.
Opinion editor Amanda Katz and her deputy Charles Lane have also disappeared.
The exits and the people who make them have many wondering whether both Lewis and Bezos have failed by alienating people who staff the paper, which has become increasingly progressive over the years.
Insiders told Puck late last month how Lewis may not feel these exits are so damning as he steers the Post toward a broader, nonpartisan future.
In a January interview with Semafor, he called Schere ‘his favorite reporter’.
Additionally, Status reported last week that star Trump reporter Josh Dawsey is parting ways with the publication in favor of the Wall Street Journal.
Insiders told journalist Oliver Darcy that Dawsey will start there next month as a political investigative reporter.
The newspaper has also lost more than half of its audience, with 250,000 people canceling their subscriptions after Bezos refused to endorse a Democratic candidate for election. The billionaire is seen a few months later with Lauren Sanchez at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago mansion
The new round of layoffs, expected this week, comes as insiders said Lewis is unlikely to be too focused on retaining talent, and is instead tightening up the financial side of the paper’s ongoing transformation ahead of the new administration .
Those familiar with the matter added how the paper’s top brass tried to dissuade Dawsey from leaving, but he had already made up his mind.
“It is also highly unlikely that he will be the last,” Darcy’s report said.
DailyMail.com has contacted the Post for comment.