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  • USA Today and 200 other Gannett-owned newspapers that do not support the presidential candidate

    USA Today and 200 other Gannett-owned newspapers that do not support the presidential candidate

    Gannett-owned USA Today and more than 200 other chain newspapers will not endorse a presidential candidate — joining the Washington Post and Los Angeles Times in choosing to remain silent in next week’s election .

    “None of the USA Today Network publications endorses the presidential or national races,” USA Today spokesperson Lark-Marie Antón told The Hill.

    Antón said that while Gannett-owned publications will not endorse candidates in national races, they do have the “discretion” to endorse at a state or local level.

    USA Today and more than 200 other Gannett-owned newspapers will not endorse candidates in national races. Los Angeles Times via Getty Images

    “Many have decided not to support individual candidates, but instead to endorse key local and state issues on the ballot that affect the community,” Antón told the Hill.

    “Why are we doing this? Because we believe that the future of America is decided at the local level – one race at a time,” said Antón.

    “And with more than 200 publications nationwide, our public service is to provide readers with the facts that matter and the reliable information they need to make informed decisions.”

    Gannett owns newspapers in major states that include the Arizona Republic and the Detroit Free Press.

    Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos wrote an op-ed in his newspaper Monday defending his decision not to endorse a presidential candidate, calling it “fair” and “principled.”

    Amazon’s founder pushed back against any notion that he ordered it to protect his business interests.

    The decision, announced on Friday, is said to have led to tens of thousands of people canceling their subscriptions and protests by journalists with a deep history at the paper.

    Jeff Bezos blocked the Washington Post editorial board from endorsing Kamala Harris. AFP via Getty Images

    The Post editorial board was prepared to back Harris before publisher Will Lewis wrote instead that readers would be better off making up their own minds.

    Bezos, in “a note from our owner” published Monday evening, said editorial endorsements create a perception of bias at a time when many Americans distrust the media and do nothing to tip the election scales.

    “Terminating them is a principled decision and it’s the right one,” Bezos said.

    Polls show Harris in a virtual tie with former President Donald Trump. Reuters

    Bezos wrote that he wished the decision to end presidential endorsements had been made earlier, “at a time away from the election and the excitement surrounding it. This was inadequate planning and not any deliberate strategy.”

    NPR reported Monday that more than 200,000 people have canceled their subscriptions to the paper, citing “two people at the paper with knowledge of internal affairs.”

    A Washington Post spokeswoman would not comment on NPR’s report.

    WaPo’s decision came just days after the Los Angeles Times also said it would not endorse a presidential candidate, a decision the paper has acknowledged cost it thousands of subscribers.

    By postal wire

    #USA #Today #Gannettowned #newspapers #support #presidential #candidate
    Image Source : nypost.com

  • Washington Post loses 250,000 – or 10% – subscribers over decision not to endorse Kamala Harris: report

    Washington Post loses 250,000 – or 10% – subscribers over decision not to endorse Kamala Harris: report

    More than 250,000 Washington Post readers — or 10% of the paper’s customer base — have canceled their subscriptions after owner Jeff Bezos blocked its editorial board from publishing an endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris, according to a report.

    Over the weekend, the iconic broadsheet had lost 200,000 subscribers after it was first learned that management had decided it would no longer allow its editorial board to endorse a presidential candidate in the current race as well as future elections, according to media reports.

    The tycoon on Monday published an op-ed in his newspaper defending the move as “a principled decision” given that presidential approvals “create a perception of one-sidedness.”

    The Washington Post has reportedly lost more than 250,000 subscribers over the past week. AFP via Getty Images

    But Bezos’ explanation apparently didn’t reassure Washington Post readers.

    As of Tuesday, more than 250,000 of them canceled their accounts, according to National Public Radio.

    A Washington Post spokesman declined to comment.

    A loss of subscriptions of that magnitude would be a blow to a popular news paper already facing financial headwinds.

    The Post had more than 2.5 million subscribers last year, most of them digital, making it third behind the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal in circulation.

    Amazon founder Bezos, whose $213 billion net worth is the second-largest in the world, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, was partying with Katy Perry in Europe on Friday as the unrest unfolded in the Washington newsroom. Post.

    In his guest essay Monday, Bezos wrote that editorial endorsements create a perception of bias at a time when many Americans distrust the media and do nothing to tip the election scales.

    “Terminating them is a principled decision and it’s the right one,” Bezos said.

    Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos defended his decision to block the editorial board from publishing his endorsement. AFP via Getty Images

    Bezos wrote that he wished the decision to end presidential endorsements had been made earlier, “at a time away from the election and the emotions surrounding it. This was inadequate planning and not any deliberate strategy.”

    After the decision, two of the newspaper’s columnists resigned and three of the nine members of the editorial board resigned from their posts.

    Retired former Post editor Martin Baron, who was editor when Bezos bought the paper, denounced the decision on social media as “cowardly, with democracy as the victim.”

    Some critics suggested that Bezos, also the owner of Amazon, ordered the disapproval to protect his business interests, acting out of fear of retaliation if former President Donald Trump was elected.

    The Washington Post endorsed Trump’s Democratic rivals in 2016 and 2020, and Trump has often denounced critical coverage from the paper.

    Bezos said an endorsement would fuel perceptions that the paper is biased. AP

    In his column, Bezos said people can see his wealth and business interests as one of two things — a shield against intimidation or a web of conflicting interests.

    He insisted that his views are principled and that his track record as owner of the Post Office since 2013 backs that up.

    “I defy you to find a time in those 11 years where I prevailed over anyone at the Post in favor of my interests,” he wrote.

    “It didn’t happen.”

    According to Semaphore, about 18,000 readers have canceled their subscriptions to the LA Times.

    Meanwhile, angry readers have also abandoned another left-leaning publication that has decided to drop an endorsement of Harris — the Los Angeles Times, whose billionaire owner Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong, also intervened against the wishes of his editorial board.

    Members of the editorial board of both newspapers resigned from their posts in protest at the decision.

    The Post has sought comment from the LA Times.

    By postal wire

    #Washington #Post #loses #subscribers #decision #endorse #Kamala #Harris #report
    Image Source : nypost.com

  • Washington Post paid to boost stories critical of Trump after staff resignations, loss of 250,000 subscribers: report

    Washington Post paid to boost stories critical of Trump after staff resignations, loss of 250,000 subscribers: report

    According to a report, the Washington Post — hit by a mass exodus of subscribers over its refusal to endorse Kamala Harris — “aggressively stepped up its paid advertising campaign” on social media platforms that promote stories critical of Donald Trump, according to a report. , according to a report.

    Owner Jeff Bezos has faced backlash over his decision last week to kill the endorsement for the vice president, which has led to the resignation of several top employees and the loss of more than 250,000 digital subscribers.

    On Thursday, the Semafor news site reported that the publication had run an ad earlier in the week on social media sites like Facebook boosting its anti-Trump coverage.

    The newspaper has been in turmoil in recent days over owner Jeff Bezos’ decision not to endorse a candidate. AP

    Promoted stories centered around the former president’s campaign rhetoric, misstatements, supporters leaving his rallies early and Trump’s controversial comments about immigrants in Ohio eating dogs, Semaphore reported.

    In contrast, stories promoted about his Democratic challenger were neutral in tone and informative, Semafor found.

    Before Monday, the paper had run about a dozen Facebook ads for the month of October, mostly promoting the Washington Post brand and avoiding any mention of Trump.

    The New York Post reached out to WaPo for comment.

    A source close to the situation told the New York Post that the Washington Post’s promoted stories on social media reflect high-performing content.

    The content of the advertising posts is taken directly from the relevant reporting, according to the source.

    “This is not new,” the source insisted.

    The Washington Post’s promoted posts include a mix of its content across all its verticals, including climate, style and other sections, the source added.

    The Beltway newspaper’s increase in paid advertising this week may also be a reflection of parent company Facebook Meta’s policy of banning new ads during election week, which is set for Tuesday.

    The Washington Post is running social media ads promoting stories critical of former President Donald Trump. Reuters

    A source said the Washington Post is likely to run some new ads before the tech giant freezes new ad buys.

    As of Thursday, at least 250,000 readers — or 10% — canceled their digital subscriptions to the Washington Post in apparent protest of Bezos’ move to end the paper’s decades-long practice of endorsing a presidential candidate, according to National Public Radio.

    Bezos, the billionaire founder of Amazon, published a guest essay on Monday saying the decision to drop endorsements was a matter of “principle” aimed at dispelling the notion that his paper was biased.

    But the move sparked howls of protest from readers on social media, as well as journalists who are either current or former Washington Post employees, such as Watergate sleuths Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein.

    At least three editorial staff resigned from the paper.

    After Bezos’ decision was announced last Friday, some of the paper’s top editors and columnists met to discuss the controversy.

    Bezos, the billionaire founder of Amazon, said blocking an approval was a matter of “principle.” Gareth Cattermole/Getty Images

    David Shipley, the paper’s opinion editor, listened as his colleagues attacked Bezos for damaging the publication’s reputation as an “independent journalistic organization,” according to the Washington Free Beacon, which obtained audio of the meeting.

    One staffer reportedly told Shipley that “the one thing that cannot happen in this country is that Trump has four more years.”

    Shipley responded by telling staff that they were welcome to express their frustration, but that they would then have to accept Bezos’ decision and move on — or resign.

    “Whatever you decide, I’m fine with it,” Shipley said.

    “What I really want to give is that you don’t get stuck in the middle. Don’t be here if you don’t want to.”

    Shipley told his colleagues that he spent an hour on the phone with Bezos in an attempt to get him to change his mind and allow the editorial board to issue its endorsement to Harris — but the tycoon refused to budge.

    The Washington Post editorial board reportedly had an endorsement of Harris drafted and ready for publication. Getty Images

    He said that while he agreed with “the principle that you shouldn’t do presidential endorsements,” he took issue with “Bezos’ timing and the way the timing could be read.”

    A similar dynamic has played out at the Los Angeles Times, where billionaire owner Patrick Soon-Shiong blocked the editorial board from publishing an endorsement of Harris.

    Soon-Shiong said she wanted the editorial board to present a side-by-side comparative analysis of the two candidates and their positions so readers could decide for themselves who to support.

    At least three LA Times employees resigned in protest, and between 10,000 and 18,000 readers canceled their subscriptions to the paper, according to reports.

    #Washington #Post #paid #boost #stories #critical #Trump #staff #resignations #loss #subscribers #report
    Image Source : nypost.com