It would appear that billionaire Amazon founder, Jeff Bezos is getting involved in managing his vanity project, The Washington Post, in a more hands-on fashion.
I shared this note with the Washington Post team this morning:
— Jeff Bezos (@JeffBezos) February 26, 2025
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…
The rest of the post:
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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The former national newspaper of political record, turned "resistance" rag turned ... well, we're not sure yet. We suppose standing for "free markets" and "personal liberty" are considered right-wing by the far-left ideologues who inhabit the press rooms of the news industry.
Let's see how the people reacted; good, bad and snarky.
This should be easy
— Ron Coleman (@RonColeman) February 26, 2025
1. "What is personal liberty and why is Trump destroying it?"
2. "Free markets: Threat or danger?"
And right out of the chute, epic snark from Twitter's famous First Amendment lawyer, Ron Coleman.
The Washington Post is the official newspaper of the government. It shouldn’t have any opinion page at all as public officials aren’t allowed to write opinions
— Three Year Letterman (@3YearLetterman) February 26, 2025
A little easier to detect the sarcasm here.
Jeff if you need someone to come on board to help out with this new direction my DM’s are open, drop me a line buddy
— Enguerrand VII de Coucy (@ingelramdecoucy) February 26, 2025
Coucy could be a great replacement, but only on the condition that he brings his frog.
Others had more helpful suggestions, like, for example, purging the Hamas sympathizers.
First order of business: Can Hamasnik Karen Attiah, and other Hamasniks on staff. You can't support a terrorist Islamist theocratic dictatorship and be for individual liberty.
— David Bernstein (@ProfDBernstein) February 26, 2025
Who could forget Karen Attiah? She's Joy Reid in print form and with better hair.
You have a number of Hamas apologists on staff. How does that comport with the two pillars? And how many free market champions do you have on news staff or on the edit page? I can't think of more than one!
— David Harsanyi (@davidharsanyi) February 26, 2025
This seems like a good starting place or at the very least, a next step.
Cool. I welcome more diverse opinions in that section, but when are you going to reform the many issues on the reporting side that have completely devalued the worth of your product?
— AG (@AGHamilton29) February 26, 2025
Well, Taylor Lorenz and Jen Rubin are gone, but there's probably more trash that can be taken out.
Maybe you should REHIRE the people let go bc they took this exact position during Covid? People like @annbauerwriter .
— Owl of Athena 🇮🇱🎗️🐿️ (@owl_elc) February 26, 2025
Another good suggestion.
I have been a WaPo subscriber for over a decade, but there have been many times over the last few years when I’ve been *thisclose* to clicking that unsubscribe button.
— Amygator 🐊 *not an actual alligator (@AmyA1A) February 26, 2025
You have till August 12, 2025 to wow me with this new tack towards reality you’re promising, or I’m giving up. pic.twitter.com/pxwrWwKIu5
It seems some are cautiously optimistic.
Welcome changes.
— Kevin Dalton (@TheKevinDalton) February 26, 2025
Democracy has been dying at the Washington Post
Others took their ball and went home.
Last straw pic.twitter.com/wkaLGoVHk4
— Jeffrey Evan Gold (@jeffgoldesq) February 26, 2025
"Free markets and personal liberty? That's it! I'm done, fascist!"
Sorry, Jeff, after decades of being a subscriber, I cancelled my subscription. You picked a side, and it was the wrong one.
— 𝕊𝕦𝕟𝕕𝕒𝕖_𝔾𝕦𝕣𝕝 (@SundaeDivine) February 26, 2025
It seems all the worst people are stomping off, which confirms that this was the right decision. Well they can always turn Colbert on tonight to soothe their extreme butt-hurt.
Who do you think you are, Jeff? The American people--workers, consumers, and everyday citizens--are the reason you became a billionaire. And now, instead of using your platform to support a fair and balanced discourse, you’re turning The Washington Post into a mouthpiece for…
— LorettaFaucher🇺🇲🌊🌊🇺🇦🌻 (@lorettafaucher) February 26, 2025
Guessing she never heard of NPR, the New York Times or any one of a thousand publications that cater to limousine socialists.
Many conservatives have adopted a wait-and-see stance.
Let’s see how this plays out. WaPo published countless lies in the past. Those all need to be undone. Not sure how that’s possible.
— Paul A. Szypula 🇺🇸 (@Bubblebathgirl) February 26, 2025
Maybe start by admitting that those articles were lies.
Still not reading WAPO until I read an article apologizing for lying about the Russian collusion hoax and renouncing the Pulitzer.
— George (@BehizyTweets) February 26, 2025
https://t.co/ngBhKWZJG6 pic.twitter.com/V3gL4WvzJe
— Charles C. W. Cooke (@charlescwcooke) February 26, 2025
Yes, Charles, we are all you.
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