Jeff Bezos, the founder of Amazon and one of the world’s richest men, reportedly got more than he bargained for during a rare visit to the newsroom of the Washington Post, which has been under his control for a decade.
A Post employee clad in a shirt with the Post’s Guild logo confronted the billionaire over rumored layoffs at the newspaper, according to three sources with knowledge of the situation cited in a New York Times report. The employee “stopped (Bezos) and asked why the company was laying people off without offering buyouts first.” The billionaire’s reported response was that he was on the premises to “listen, not answer questions” while supporting the news organization.
A WashPost spokesperson didn’t comment to TheWrap beyond confirming that Bezos was on hand to see the paper’s publisher Fred Ryan, editor Sally Buzbee and staff. “Jeff is here for in-person meetings with Fred, Sally, newsroom leadership and other Post staff,” she said in an email.
Last month, the Post’s Publisher Fred Ryan told the newsroom to brace for impending layoffs of “single-digit percentage” while a spokeswoman later explained that the cuts would “put our business in the best position for future growth.” The layoffs were expected to be announced “early this year,” according to The Times.
The venerable newspaper in the nation’s capital reportedly has experienced declining advertising and fewer new subscribers than at the peak of the coronavirus pandemic. As result, the newspaper’s bottom line is in the red after years of profitability.
Speculations have swirled over the Post’s status quo, but Bezos has not made any public comments.
During his appearance Thursday at the Post’s D.C. newsroom – his first in over a year – he reportedly told the Post employees that he was “delighted to be here and see all these faces.”
Bezos thanked Buzbee, The Post’s top editor, who recently returned from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, for “allowing me to listen in.” Buzbee simply replied, “great, let’s have a news meeting,” according to The Times’ sources.
