Marty Baron, former Washington Post chief editor, stated that people “should be grateful” to the press for their efforts in “holding Trump accountable.”
Baron discussed the paper’s owner, Jeff Bezos, and his recent changes to the opinion page, which announced that it would support “personal liberties and free markets” and would not publish any positions that contradicted those pillars.
On Mediaite’s “Press Club” podcast Monday, Baron stated that he was “very disturbed” and “shocked” by the decision.
“It’s not something I anticipated because my impression was that Bezos had always argued for a variety of opinions on the opinion pages — that they should reflect the range of opinions in the country,” Baron told me.
“There is always debate about policy, and a news organization like The Washington Post has a history of covering a wide range of perspectives. It should ensure that this continues. So I was stunned and deeply disturbed by this.”
Despite his criticism, Baron argued against canceling Washington Post subscriptions, saying he was still “delighted” with the news it published and hoped it would be recognized for its “revelatory reporting” on President Donald Trump.
“The Post is actually doing the work, holding Trump accountable, telling people what’s happening in their government, despite all this stuff happening on the opinion pages,” according to Baron.
“I’ve been gone for four years, but I know the staff, and they’re great. They are honorable people. They work very hard to gather the information. It’s unfortunate that they’re being harmed by everything going on around them.”
He went on to say, “I wish Bezos and [Washington Post CEO] Will Lewis would publicly thank them for the work they’re doing because that’s exactly why we have and need a free press in this country.”
It would be nice if, instead of causing so much disruption, they expressed their appreciation to the staff for their hard work and insightful reporting. They are deserving of our gratitude. I believe the public should be grateful and supportive of the work they are doing.
Baron also urged outlets to disregard claims by people like Trump that legacy media is dead, claiming Trump is “unbelievably obsessed” with traditional media.
“But I will say this about the press: Trump continues to argue that we are irrelevant, as do his supporters. Elon Musk claims that we are irrelevant. But the truth is, we are not irrelevant. The most obvious evidence of this is their obsession with us. If we weren’t important, they wouldn’t be so obsessed with us. They didn’t give a damn about us,” Baron explained.
“In fact, that appears to be all they can talk about. Trump is incredibly obsessed with the traditional press. So, how can you both argue that we are irrelevant while constantly talking about us? “It makes no sense.”
Baron made headlines in October when he criticized his former newspaper for refusing to endorse a candidate in the 2024 presidential election.
“I believe this is a serious mistake that has caused significant damage to the Washington Post’s brand… On Boston Public Radio, Baron expressed concern about the impact on the Post’s brand and reputation, as well as the potential for increased suspicion.
