Frustrations Mount at Washington Post as Its Business Struggles

A Decade Ago, Jeff Bezos Bought a Newspaper. Now He’s Paying Attention to It Again.

During his tenure as executive editor at The Washington Post, Martin Baron ran into a persistent problem.

Jeff Bezos had purchased The Post for $250 million in 2013, less than a year after Mr. Baron had taken over. Mr. Bezos, who arrived at media ownership after founding Amazon and remaking online shopping, wanted his top editor to transform the newspaper from a regional news organization into a truly global one.

 

Some combination of money and resources and readership I suppose.

Per the above,

The Post was also bleeding talent. In the past year, several prominent reporters, including the Pulitzer Prize winners Eli Saslow, Robert Samuels and Stephanie McCrummen, left, along with top editors including Mr. Barr; Steven Ginsberg, a longtime editor; David Malitz, senior culture editor; and Sharif Durhams, deputy managing editor.

And Greg Sargent just took the buyout.

Lewis certainly has his work cut out for him.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/pr/2023/11/04/washington-post-announces-william-lewis-publisher-ceo/

 

I'm currently reading Baron's book. Did not realize his resignation was in early 2021. Thought it was more recent.

 

Nice to see he got a prominent spot

 

Guess there isn't a non-compete in the buyout. A little surprising.

 

It isn't surprising for Sargent. (And he's a good writer. But TNR is a better spot for what he does.)

 

Are non-compete clauses common in journalism buyouts? The only clause in the buyouts offered at my shop over the years have dealt with our own publication (we couldn't do any freelance work for our publication over the course of the buyout).

 

Just figured with a large outlet like the Post and a large and competitive coverage area, there would be one. For print, Gannetthouse won’t let you hire back exes as stringers, only one I am personally aware of in print. They’re very common in broadcast media.

 

I just did that. As you can see, it worked. Thanks.