Two more top reporters are leaving the Washington Post for more left-leaning pastures

Two top Washington Post reporters have left the Jeff Bezos-owned paper as it continues to reel over the billionaire’s decision to kill a Kamala Harris supporter.

Political correspondents Ashley Parker and Michael Scherer were poached from The Atlantic — owned by Laurene Powell Jobs — and will join the left-leaning magazine ahead of President-elect Donald Trump’s second inauguration, the New York Times reported Tuesday.

Their departures follow a report Monday by Puck News that White House correspondent Tyler Pager and investigative reporter Josh Dawsey are “considering a transfer or have already decided to leave.”

Two of the Washington Post’s political correspondents are headed for the Atlantic. Bloomberg via Getty Images

The Beltway broadsheet has suffered an exodus of major talent — and a reported loss of more than 200,000 subscribers — since Bezos blocked the editorial board from endorsing the Democratic nominee just weeks before the election.

The members of the Three Opinions section – David Hoffman, Molly Roberts and Robert Kagan – resigned after the decision not to endorse a candidate for the first time in decades.

Bezos, the world’s second-richest person with a net worth estimated by the Bloomberg Billionaires Index at $241 billion, was a frequent target of Trump during his first term in office — largely because of the administration’s cover-up. his from the Washington Post.

He defended his decision shortly after initial protests from staff that it was based on his attempt to stand up to Trump.

“Presidential endorsements do nothing to tip the scales of elections. No undecided voter in Pennsylvania is going to say, ‘I’m going to go with the approval of Gazette A.’ None,” he wrote in an op-ed for the Washington Post.

Anger among staff was brewing long before his decision, as editors clashed over a shake-up planned by the paper’s new CEO Will Lewis, who took over in January.

Sally Buzbee, the WaPo’s first female executive editor, abruptly resigned in June — rather than accept a new role as head of the social media division.

Washington Post White House Correspondent Ashley Parker (left) at Meet the Press in 2019. NBC

Others who have since jumped include editor-in-chief Matea Gold, who was hired by the Times, and staff writer Shane Harris, who left for The Atlantic.

The Washington Post did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The paper has made several key hires from the Wall Street Journal in the past month, adding Warren Strobel as an intelligence reporter and Karen Pensiero as standards editor.

Last week, tech reporter Kara Swisher was said to be working to assemble a group of investors to buy the paper from Bezos.

“The Post can do better … it’s so crazy to see what’s going on. … Why not me? Why not one of us?” Swisher told Axios.

Former Washington Post reporter Michael Scherer (right) at the Time 100 Gala in 2016. Getty Images for Time

The Atlantic, meanwhile, has had success in recent years with a growing number of digital subscribers and is in talks to add more Washington Post reporters to its team, two sources told the Times.

According to the report, it is looking to hire about a dozen new reporters and editors in anticipation of Trump’s inauguration.

“We believe in accountability journalism,” Jeffrey Goldberg, editor-in-chief of The Atlantic, told the Times. “We want to rigorously cover the next administration. I want to build our team with the best political reporters and editors I can find.”

#top #reporters #leaving #Washington #Post #leftleaning #pastures
Image Source : nypost.com

Leave a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Scroll to Top