Former Washington Post editor Robert Kagan who resigned Friday after Washington Post’s decision to not back Harris despite planned endorsement, claimed that Jeff Bezos, the paper’s billionaire owner, struck a secret “quid-pro-quo” deal with former President Donald Trump. The decision follows another leading newspaper, The LA Times, blocking support for Kamala Harris, which sparked mega controversy among the staff, leading to several resignations.
Robert Kagan accuses Jeff Bezos of colluding with Trump
Kagan claims Bezos, owner of the Post and Amazon, allegedly put the brakes on a planned endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris to stay on potential President of America, Donald Trump’s good side.
Also read: Readers respond to Washington Post after Jeff Bezos ‘kills’ Harris endorsement: ‘Cowards’
Earlier, there were rumours about the paper’s divided viewpoints as election day approaches with the chances of either candidate winning or losing on a razor-thin margin.
Speaking to the Daily Beast, Kagan mentioned a meeting between Trump and executives from Blue Origin, Bezos’s space venture, that resulted in the bombshell decision of WaPo becoming the second-largest newspaper to not endorse a candidate this year—a move that received backlash from both readers and journalists alike, calling the act “cowardice.”
The Post’s decision triggered 2,000 subscription cancellations in just 24 hours, with one staff member calling it “a surprisingly high number,” according to The NY Post.
Both Bezos and Trump have yet to address these allegations, which Kagan warns point to a troubling future of media censorship. “Trump waited to make sure that Bezos did what he said he was going to do, and then met with the Blue Origin people,” the editor-at-large said.
Kagan, a sharp critic of Trump, went further to claim that “there was an actual deal made, meaning that Bezos communicated, or through his people, communicated directly with Trump, and they set up this quid pro quo.” He added that the alleged collusion between the duo had “been in the works for some time.”
Editor claims he ‘blocked’ endorsement, not Bezos
Amid criticism and claims from staff, Washington Post CEO William Lewis, who previously announced the paper would no longer endorse presidential candidates, now asserts that he personally blocked the endorsement decision, not Jeff Bezos. “Reporting around the role of The Washington Post owner and the decision not to publish a presidential endorsement has been inaccurate,” Lewis clarified in a statement to The Daily Beast.
“He was not sent, did not read, and did not opine on any draft,” he said according to the outlet. “As Publisher, I do not believe in presidential endorsements. We are an independent newspaper and should support our readers’ ability to make up their own minds.”
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“I didn’t sign up to be a journalist to be silent on what matters most. I didn’t come here to be a coward. Some of us really, truly believe in speaking truth to power. We were betrayed today,” wrote WaPo columnist Karen Attiah on X after resigning from her position. This followed claims that staffers were awaiting approval from Lewis and Bezos to greenlight the planned Harris endorsement, which was ultimately scrapped.
