Bezos intervenes, again

Dear reader,

Yesterday Jeff Bezos, owner of the Washington Post and the third richest man on the planet, directly intervened for a second time in recent months in his newspaper’s coverage, undermining its editorial independence.

Bezos announced in an email to staff that he had directed the Post’s opinion editor to limit the section’s pieces only to those “in support and defense of … personal liberties and free markets”, appearing to restrict how the Post’s opinion writers can respond to the crisis in the US – and the world – brought about by Donald Trump’s second reign as president. Rather than comply with this politicised edict, the Post’s opinion editor resigned.

Since the US election, Bezos has stepped up his direct interventions in the Post’s coverage. In October, the Amazon and Blue Origin founder, who has billions of dollars at stake in government contracts, told editors at the Post to pull a planned endorsement of Kamala Harris, the first time in 30 years the newspaper’s editorial board had not endorsed a candidate.

The Guardian will never take editorial direction from our billionaire owner – because thankfully, we don't have one. Instead, we rely on readers like you to fund our truly independent work.

If you prefer your journalism to be free from proprietorial interference, please consider supporting the Guardian on a monthly basis from €4, or with a one-time amount from €1.

This is what billionaire ownership of news organisations looks like. We are proud to offer an alternative – thanks to your support.

Yours,
Betsy