US polls | Washington Post’s refusal to endorse any candidate on Bezos’ fiat sparks fury

The Washington Post’s last-minute decision not to endorse any presidential candidate triggered a storm within and outside the iconic newspaper, with thousands cancelling their subscription in protest against owner Jeff Bezos’ controversial intervention.

It is the first time in 36 years that the Post would not endorse any of the candidates in a presidential contest.

A Post report itself quoted sources as saying that its editorial page employees had drafted an endorsement of Democratic nominee Kamala Harris. But this was not presented to the board after a call by Bezos.

Subscribers vent ire

In no time, innumerable subscribers took to social media, accusing Bezos of prioritising his business agenda. Many commenters saw it as a betrayal of the Washington Post's readers.

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Robert Kagan, an opinion editor-at-large at the Post, quit in protest. “This is obviously an effort by Bezos to curry favour with Donald Trump in the anticipation of his possible victory,” he told CNN.

Within 24 hours, more than 2,000 subscribers cancelled their subscriptions. One of them was author Stephen King, a frequent critic of Trump who wrote on X: “After 5 years, I have cancelled my subscription to The Washington Post.”

Loyal readers moan

On Saturday morning, “Democracy Dies in Darkness”, the newspaper's official slogan, was trending on X.

On Friday, Will Lewis, the Washington Post's publisher, announced that the paper's editorial board would not be endorsing a candidate this year. But what prompted the backlash was a report by the newspaper that the call was taken by Bezos.

The backlash

Karen Attiah, a columnist for the Post, dubbed the decision an “absolute stab in the back”.

The union representing journalists in the newspaper said it was “deeply concerned” by the move “especially a mere 11 days ahead of an immensely consequential election”, The Guardian reported.

Critics have speculated that the decision might stem from Trump's past criticisms of Bezos and Amazon, given the company's reliance on government contracts.

‘A terrible mistake’

While the Post said it will also never again endorse any candidate, it published an article by two staff reporters revealing what happened in the run up to the decision.

The Post on Friday evening published a third article, signed by opinion columnists who said: “The Washington Post’s decision not to make an endorsement in the presidential campaign is a terrible mistake.”

Post’s official line

Publisher Lewis said the Post decision meant it was “returning to our roots of not endorsing presidential candidates.”

“We recognise that this will be read in a range of ways, including as a tacit endorsement of one candidate, or as a condemnation of another, or as an abdication of responsibility,” he wrote.

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“That is inevitable. We don’t see it that way. We see it as consistent with the values the Post has always stood for.”

Readers slam Post 

More than 10,000 reader comments were posted on Lewis’ article, many of them blasting the Post for its decision.

“The most consequential election in our country, a choice between Fascism and Democracy, and you sit out? Cowards. Unethical, fearful cowards,” read one comment.

The Post had in 2016 and 2020 endorsed Trump rivals Hillary Clinton and Joe Biden in editorials.