The Washington Post is searching for a new opinion editor after David Shipley decided to exit in the wake of a new focus set by owner Jeff Bezos: personal liberties and free markets.
“We are going to be writing every day in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets. We’ll cover other topics too of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others,” Bezos said in a note to staff that he then shared on X on Wednesday.
“There was a time when a newspaper, especially one that was a local monopoly, might have seen it as a service to bring to the reader’s doorstep every morning a broad-based opinion section that sought to cover all views,” he added. “Today, the Internet does that job.”
Bezos said that he offered Shipley the chance to continue running the section under this new focus, but he declined.
“I offered David Shipley, whom I greatly admire, the opportunity to lead this new chapter. I suggested to him that if the answer wasn’t ‘hell yes,’ then it had to be ‘no,’” he explained. “After careful consideration, David decided to step away. This is a significant shift, it won’t be easy, and it will require 100% commitment — I respect his decision. We’ll be searching for a new Opinion Editor to own this new direction.”
Washington Post publisher Will Lewis backed the new direction.
“Earlier today, our owner Jeff published a note explaining The Washington Post’s recalibrated content strategy for our opinion section. I want to thank him for clearly and succinctly spelling out what we stand for at The Washington Post,” he said in a memo. “I will be so very proud for The Post to be known for its two key pillars: our belief in free markets and personal liberties.”
Lewis said he’s excited about the “new clarity and transparency” of Bezos’ vision.
“This is not about siding with any political party,” Lewis said. “This is about being crystal clear about what we stand for as a newspaper.”
Despite Lewis’ assertion that it’s not the case, the move is the latest decision by Bezos that is seen by many as moving the paper further to the right, or at the very least cozying up to Trump.
Bezos pulled the paper’s planned Kamala Harris endorsement last fall, then gleefully attended Donald Trump’s inauguration (and donated $1 million to the event). Washington Post editorial cartoonist Ann Telnaes quit in January after a satirical cartoon, which poked fun at the paper’s owner and other media and tech giants bending the knee to President-elect Donald Trump, was killed. And earlier this month, the paper canceled a planned “Fire Elon” advertisement.
Read Bezos’ full note below.
I shared this note with the Washington Post team this morning:
I’m writing to let you know about a change coming to our opinion pages.
We are going to be writing every day in support and defense of two pillars: personal liberties and free markets. We’ll cover other topics too of course, but viewpoints opposing those pillars will be left to be published by others.
There was a time when a newspaper, especially one that was a local monopoly, might have seen it as a service to bring to the reader’s doorstep every morning a broad-based opinion section that sought to cover all views. Today, the internet does that job.
I am of America and for America, and proud to be so. Our country did not get here by being typical. And a big part of America’s success has been freedom in the economic realm and everywhere else. Freedom is ethical — it minimizes coercion — and practical — it drives creativity, invention, and prosperity.
I offered David Shipley, whom I greatly admire, the opportunity to lead this new chapter. I suggested to him that if the answer wasn’t “hell yes,” then it had to be “no.” After careful consideration, David decided to step away. This is a significant shift, it won’t be easy, and it will require 100% commitment — I respect his decision. We’ll be searching for a new Opinion Editor to own this new direction.
I’m confident that free markets and personal liberties are right for America. I also believe these viewpoints are underserved in the current market of ideas and news opinion. I’m excited for us together to fill that void.
Jeff
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