Jeff Bezos Announces Limits on Viewpoints Allowed in Washington Post Opinion Section

Changes are coming to the Washington Post. Opinion editor David Shipley has announced that he is leaving his position at the newspaper. His resignation follows the desire expressed by the title's shareholder, Jeff Bezos , who also owns Amazon, to reposition the columns published by the daily.

In an email to the entire editorial staff, the American billionaire explains that this section will now be refocused around "two pillars" : "individual freedoms" and the "free market" . "We will cover other subjects, of course, but points of view opposed to these two pillars will be published in a newspaper other than ours," he writes.

Jeff Bezos claims a change of line in line with the heritage of the United States. "I am of America and for America, and proud of it. Our country did not get here by being like the others. And a large part of America's success comes from freedom, in the economic sphere as in everything else. Freedom is ethical and practical; it stimulates creativity, invention and prosperity."

The owner says he asked David Shipley to "lead this new chapter." "I told him that if his answer wasn't 'Yes, absolutely!', then it had to be no. After much thought, David has decided to step down," he says. "This is a major shift, it won't be easy and will require 100% commitment. I respect his decision. We will be looking for a new editor," he adds.

In a note to the column's journalists, transcribed by the New York Times, David Shipley said he made his decision "after thinking about the best way to move forward in this profession that I love." He also said he was "grateful to have been able to work alongside a team of opinion journalists committed to strong, innovative and enlightening commentary."

This announcement seems to bring the prestigious newspaper even closer to the conservative camp. During the last presidential elections, the title made headlines by adopting a "neutral line" . Its Opinions section did not support Democratic candidate Kamala Harris against Republican Donald Trump, while it had supported Democratic candidates in the four previous elections. According to the journalists' union, it was Jeff Bezos himself who intervened to prevent the publication of an article supporting Kamala Harris. This allegation was denied by management. But this situation led to a wave of cancellations: the Washington Post lost 200,000 subscribers in the space of 72 hours .

Everything suggests that the repositioning of the "Opinion" pages around the principles of individual freedom and free market aims to bring "WaPo" closer to the policies of Donald Trump, Elon Musk, or JD Vance. Like other tech bosses, Jeff Bezos occupied the front row of the president's inauguration ceremony. "I am confident that economic and individual freedoms are right for the United States. I also believe that these points of view are underserved by the current supply of ideas and information. I am excited at the idea that we can fill this void," argues the businessman in his note to the newspaper's editors.

In an internal email, the newspaper's CEO Will Levis assured that this editorial decision is not intended "to side with a political party." "It's about being very clear about what we stand for as a newspaper . It's an essential element in serving as a source of reference information for all Americans," he justified. The executive indicated that an interim editor-in-chief will be named while a replacement for David Shipley is recruited.