Washington Submit set to lose $77 million this yr even earlier than boycott erupted over non-endorsement: Report

The Washington Submit was already in monetary bother even earlier than the latest boycott motion that erupted in opposition to the paper.

A report from New York Journal’s Intelligencer make clear a latest assembly at The Submit newsroom the place the highest brass revealed that the paper was on tempo to lose a whopping $77 million this yr, a determine that doesn’t even embody the staggering 250,000 subscribers it misplaced over its last-minute resolution by billionaire proprietor Jeff Bezos to not endorse Vice President Kamala Harris within the last days of the presidential race.

“[It’s] not a shock in any respect,” one Submit staffer advised Fox Information Digital in response to the report. “It means ‘buckle up.’”

Notably, the $77 million in reported losses mirrors the precise determine Washington Submit writer Will Lewis stated in Could the paper misplaced over the prior yr. 

WAPO STAFFER UNSURE PAPER CAN RECOVER AS BEZOS-OWNED OUTLET SHEDS 250,000 SUBSCRIBERS OVER ENDORSEMENT FIASCO 

The Washington Submit is reportedly on tempo to lose $77 million this yr, which does not embody the losses from the latest boycott over its non-endorsement. (Andrew Harnik/Getty Photographs)

The Intelligencer cited different staffers, one saying “The extent of anger is thru the roof, and concern can be by means of the roof.” 

“The highest tales that do nicely convert 200 readers to subscribers,” one other staffer advised the journal. “You’re doing all of your greatest work, hoping you change 200 subscribers. And we misplaced 250,000 by means of naïveté and poor decision-making.”

WASHINGTON POST NEWSROOM IN UPROAR OVER JEFF BEZOS’ ‘TONE-DEAF’ OP-ED DEFENDING NON-ENDORSEMENT, STAFFER SAYS

Based on the report, The Submit, which has suffered an exodus of high-profile expertise in recent times, might have much more staffers fleeing, saying a few of its “most marketable journalists” are “searching for out alternatives at different retailers even because the grind of the brand new Trump administration begins.”

A spokesperson for The Washington Submit declined to touch upon its income numbers when requested by Fox Information Digital. 

Billionaire Jeff Bezos purchased The Washington Submit in 2013. ( SAUL LOEB / AFP) (Photograph by SAUL LOEB/AFP by way of Getty Photographs)

The Submit’s monetary woes have fashioned a cloud over the “Democracy Dies in Darkness” paper for years, however the newsroom was rocked with turmoil after Bezos halted the editorial board’s endorsement of Harris, establishing a brand new coverage going ahead of not issuing endorsements for presidential candidates. 

That was met with swift backlash each inside and out of doors the paper and resulted within the lack of 250,000 liberal subscribers, which NPR famous was roughly 10% of its 2.5 million whole subscribers. 

JEFF BEZOS ADDRESSES WASHINGTON POST ENDORSEMENT FIASCO, CITES DISTRUST IN MEDIA LED TO ‘PRINCIPLED DECISION’

The Washington Submit was set to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris earlier than it was halted by its billionaire proprietor Jeff Bezos. (AP/Jacquelyn Martin)

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Bezos penned an op-ed defending the choice, citing rising mistrust within the media. 

“We should be correct, and we should be believed to be correct. It’s a bitter capsule to swallow, however we’re failing on the second requirement,” Bezos wrote. “Most individuals consider the media is biased. Anybody who doesn’t see that is paying scant consideration to actuality, and those that battle actuality lose. Actuality is an undefeated champion. It could be straightforward responsible others for our lengthy and persevering with fall in credibility (and, subsequently, decline in influence), however a sufferer mentality won’t assist. Complaining just isn’t a method. We should work more durable to manage what we are able to management to extend our credibility.”

“By itself, declining to endorse presidential candidates just isn’t sufficient to maneuver us very far up the belief scale, however it’s a significant step in the correct path. I want we had made the change sooner than we did, in a second farther from the election and the feelings round it. That was insufficient planning, and never some intentional technique,” Bezos later conceded.