Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon Approximately incur $100 million in losses for The Washington Post in 2023.
The Post is likely to fall short of planned advertising income for 2023, according to two further people informed on the situation, the NYT reports. Since the 2020 election, when it peaked with 3 million digital subscribers as opposed to the current 2.5 million, The Post has had difficulty growing its paid client base.
Since the 2020 election, when the number of its digital subscribers reached three million, The Post has found it difficult to attract more paying readers. The Times said in an article titled “A Decade Ago, Jeff Bezos Bought a Newspaper” that it currently has about 2.5 million readers. He’s now focusing on it once more.
The Post’s leadership felt optimistic about the publication’s future.
Interim CEO Patty Stonesifer allegedly stated, “I’m very excited about what we can do here at The Washington Post in the decade ahead.” “The Post’s second decade under Jeff’s ownership should be even more thrilling.”
According to two “familiar with [Bezos’] interactions” with The Post, the billionaire’s interest in the publication originally lasted for “several years” before he “receded somewhat,” the story stated.
“That changed in January when Ms. Buzbee talked with Mr. Bezos and urgently conveyed the urgent message that morale at The Post was low. According to two individuals aware of her comments, she said that Mr. Ryan, the newspaper’s main business officer, was largely to blame.
But this year, Bezos “made a rare appearance in the newsroom,” attending a “morning news meeting.”
Bezos has “weighed in” on a new initiative for The Post’s opinion section behind the scenes. The effort, which “doesn’t yet have an official name,” “is exploring a forum for readers to submit their own opinions and commentary in cities across the United States,” The Times said.
In June, Fox News Digital covered Fred Ryan’s resignation as The Post’s CEO as the publication continued to struggle with high worker turnover and dwindling online readership.
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According to a Post insider, Ryan’s revelation came as a surprise, and Bezos probably forced Ryan out to replace him with younger leadership.
It’s difficult to tell if he was pushed or jumped… We’re still expanding and recruiting. Fred, though, is 68 years old. Therefore, if I were to speculate—and this is simply speculating—I’d say Bezos is growing impatient and wanted to bring in new blood, they claimed, noting the significant subscriber loss. Bezos is concerned.
Neither The Washington Post nor Bezos commented.
