The Washington Post appears to be shifting its mission of delivering hard-hitting news that holds power to account for something it focuses on. “Storytelling,” according to a new report in new york times– And the time couldn't be better than this. As Donald Trump is scheduled to be inaugurated on Monday, Post host Jeff Bezos will be joining his fellow billionaires in congratulating him as America enters a new era of oligarchy that accelerates beyond the reach of the Trump administration. Measurable
Suzi Watford, the Post's chief strategy officer, internally showed off the Post's new slogan, “Riveting Storytelling for All of America,” as part of a slide deck about the newspaper's future. According to the Times, the slide deck reportedly focused on storytelling. The story states that the goal is “Bring a spirit of unrelenting inquiry. which is supported by reliable sources To present impactful stories in the form the world needs.”
It all sounds all well and good. Even though it looks a bit dull. Until you remember that Donald, Trump, is about to take power again. Post leading slogan “Democracy dies in darkness” in 2017, just as Trump entered the White House for the first time. But the newspaper has sought to align its goals with Trump's worldview and the business interests of Bezos, who has lucrative contracts with the U.S. government.
How can we be sure this focused shift will help Trump? It was revealed earlier this week that it will feature some of the biggest names in tech. Attending Trump's inauguration ceremonyincluding Bezos, Elon Musk, Sam Altman, Tim Cook, Sundar Pichai and Mark Zuckerberg, among many others, far from being treated as fascist threats. As Trump clearly does. All of these people see Trump as someone who can help them seize more power and market share. By fully manipulating the government to serve their interests, according to Bloomberg, Trump raised a whopping $200 million for his inauguration committee. With giants like Bezos and Cook personally signing $1 million checks for Trump's inauguration.
We also learned on Wednesday that TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew will be the opening ceremony– That fact is noteworthy because video apps are about to be effectively banned in the US on Sunday. That depends on what the Supreme Court decides. SCOTUS heard oral arguments last week. And it's not clear what Trump will do once he takes office to stop the ban. Even though it's a day late, Trump had previously supported a TikTok ban before doing a complete 180 on TikTok. March 2024– and some reports say Trump is planning an executive order to delay the law from taking effect.
Bezos personally intervened to stop The Washington Post from supporting Kamala Harris. before the electionWhat Bezos insists on is simply a principle that his newspaper should not endorse. That is patently nonsense. The Washington Post certified Or Trump's Cabinet nominations this week?
The Post lost more than a quarter million subscribers after it became clear that Bezos was interfering with reports to help Trump. And it currently has fewer than 3 million digital subscribers, according to the New York Times. For comparison, the Times has about 11 million subscribers. Clearly, the Washington Post is targeting that. 200 million “paying users,” a terrifyingly ridiculous goal for a newspaper long despised by Trump's fans. This is often thought of as liberal propaganda. No matter how well they play against the MAGA outfit. It is not clear whether How is a “paying user” different from a subscription? But the speculation is that WaPo will start selling all kinds of products and services.
In the previous era The oligarchy element of American society is often in the background. But in Trump's second era It seems like more and more everything is being revealed. Having made a stunningly stupid business decision to curry favor with Trump, Amazon has reportedly paid up. 40 million dollars for the right to air a “documentary” about Melania Trump
If we write Shortly after the election In November, Big Tech was on track to kiss Trump goodbye in a way never thought possible. Some speculate that this is because people like Zuckerberg don't want to go to prison. It's a threat Trump has made while he's been out of office. And although there may be an element of fear there But it is more likely that these people will see an opportunity to make huge amounts of money. More money than these billionaires ever made before.
Correction: This post originally stated that the Washington Post would drop the “Democracy Dies in Darkness” slogan, something the Post denied. It will certainly be interesting to see if that decline continues next year. The spokesperson also made a point by claiming the newspaper was aiming for 200 million subscriptions, insisting that indeed it was. And then have a goal to Gizmodo regrets the mistake while also not fully understanding the nuances unless WaPo starts selling mattresses or something.