In the wake of the unexpected layoffs at The Washington Post, former executive editor of the daily newspaper, Martin Baron, has revealed that the mass firing might have something to do with Jeff Bezos’ fear of Donald Trump. He recently opened up about the deteriorating state of the Bezos-owned news outlet, suggesting that it is due to the latter’s intentions to get into the good books of the current president.
Jeff Bezos was afraid of Donald Trump
During a recent conversation, the veteran journalist shared his two cents on the recent Washington Post layoffs. He reflected on their possible connection to the Amazon founder being afraid of the POTUS.
“[Bezos] acquired the paper about a year after I had been there,” Martin Baron noted on The Briefing with Jen Psaki, He added, “He invested. He spoke on behalf of the mission of the Post. He spoke on behalf of the mission of the press in this country.”
While Baron admitted that the news outlet initially “grew under the ownership,” he noted that the recent layoffs “represent a turn back.”
“It suggests that this newspaper, with a deep heritage and historically high ambitions, is going to retreat,” Baron continued. “And it’s a terrible thing to see a news organization that’s been so important to the history of this country retreat the way that this newspaper is doing.”
The former Boston Globe editor then detailed how the beginning of Donald Trump’s second presidential term influenced Jeff Bezos to adopt a different approach with The Washington Post.
“Trump came into office again,” Baron said. “He had promised vengeance against his perceived political enemies. Jeff Bezos was seen as a political enemy by Donald Trump for one reason and one reason only, and that was the coverage of the Washington Post.”
This, according to Martin Baron, prompted Bezos to fear that the Trump administration might start targeting his other businesses if The Washington Post continued to run news criticizing the current regime.
Baron, who embraced retirement in 2021, concluded his account by saying, “This is a newspaper that has prided itself on its independence, and the behavior of Jeff Bezos has suggested to the readers that he is not independent at all. He’s actually dependent — dependent on Donald Trump.”
