- The world's third richest man has said the newspaper will no longer publish views that conflict with “personal liberties and free markets.”
WASHINGTON: Newspaper owner Jeff Bezos announced Wednesday that the Washington Post will no longer publish opinions that conflict with “individual liberties and free markets,” the latest in a series of meddling by the billionaire in the editorial direction of America’s largest newspaper.
“We will write every day in support and defense of the two pillars: individual liberties and free markets,” Bezos wrote on social media platform X.
“We will, of course, consider other topics, but views that contradict these pillars will be published by others.”
The move, a major departure from the norm on the opinion pages of the Washington Post and most reputable news organizations around the world, comes amid growing threats to American media freedom and accusations of bias from President Donald Trump.
In October, Bezos sparked controversy by blocking the paper's planned endorsement of Democratic Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 presidential election, prompting newsroom protests and subscriber cancellations.
And in January, the paper's award-winning political cartoonist announced her resignation after publishing a cartoon depicting Bezos groveling over Trump's rejection.
At the time, editorial page editor David Shipley defended the decision, saying it was made to avoid covering the same story twice.
On Wednesday, Bezos announced that Shipley was leaving his post because he had not signed off on a new policy on opinion pages.
“I assumed that if the answer wasn't 'hell yes,' then it had to be 'no,'” Bezos said.
Other Post employees also expressed their concerns.
“Today, Jeff Bezos made a major incursion into the Washington Post opinion section, making it clear that dissenting views will not be published there,” Jeff Stein, the paper’s chief economics correspondent, told X.
Stein added that he “hasn't felt like my journalism has been encroached upon in terms of covering the news, but if Bezos tries to interfere with the news, I'll leave immediately.”
Amazon owner and the world's third-richest man, Bezos, along with other US tech tycoons, has become increasingly close to Trump since his election last year.
Bezos was among a group of tech billionaires given top jobs at Trump's inauguration, and he visited the Republican at his Mar-a-Lago estate during the transition period.
In a post Wednesday, Bezos said the outlet doesn't need to publish opposing views because “the Internet does that job.”
