- Jeff Bezos is more interested in expanding the Post’s technological capabilities than in acquisitions, the sources said.
- Post executives discussed buying Kotaku and Decision Desk HQ, but were rejected.
- Bezos and editor Fred Ryan are looking for a successor to editor Marty Baron.
- Visit the Insider Business section for more stories.
Editor’s note: This story originally included a statement that Marty Baron, Jeff Bezos and The Washington Post had discussed a possible acquisition of the Miami Herald.
After further analysis, the source of this detail came from someone who said he was informed but was not directly involved in the reported conversation. The specific conversation could not be verified by means of additional reports and was instead contested. Mention of this conversation has been removed.
Jeff Bezos has owned a model newspaper since he bought The Washington Post in 2013, increasing the newspaper’s technological capabilities and avoiding interference with editorial issues.
But now that Bezos is stepping down as CEO of Amazon to become the company’s chief executive, Post employees are speculating on how engaged his billionaire owner will become when choosing a successor for executive editor Marty Baron.
Acquisitions are an area of speculation. The Post did none under Bezos, but according to two people familiar with the matter, Post executives have discussed the possibility of acquisitions in the past.
Post members described, instead, how Bezos sees the Post’s role in saving journalism – through technology, not through acquisition.
Since Bezos bought the newspaper, the Post has invested heavily in technology. Its Arc platform, for example, provides the technical infrastructure for more than 1,000 locations worldwide and has become an increasingly important part of the Post’s business. Arc brings in tens of millions of revenue per year and is at breakeven, according to a source familiar with the matter.
The Post also licenses its internal Zeus adtech tool to companies like McClatchy, Seattle Times and Tribune Publishing. A Post source said Zeus was almost even as well.
For Bezos, Arc and Zeus are for The Washington Post what Amazon Web Services (AWS) is for Amazon – profitable cloud-based offerings through which outside companies can innovate, according to people familiar with their thinking.
An additional question for Bezos will be whether to split Arc or Zeus into separate companies. This could help market the products to a wider range of companies, although part of the fascination for the services is that they help publishers become part of a collective that includes the Post itself.
Meanwhile, the IT expansion has fueled internal speculation that CIO Shailesh Prakash could succeed editor Fred Ryan, 65, who is approaching retirement age. (Barão is 66 years old).
“Fred hopes to remain an editor for a long time and has assured Jeff that he has no intention of retiring anytime soon,” said a Post spokesman.
The Post discussed, but ended up going over other acquisitions
After Bezos named the Post as a passion that will receive “time and energy” in his announcement of resignation from the position of Amazon CEO, texts and pants started flying among the “Posties” in the newsroom. Some said they believed Bezos’ general commitment to the Post was to polish his legacy. They are largely unsure of what the job change will mean to them, if anything.
Journalistically, Bezos is said to be very interested in the specific coverage of the area. During his tenure, for example, the Post expanded its technology coverage and recruited reporters for vehicles such as The Wall Street Journal.
The newspaper looked at other targeted acquisitions in the past, including a detailed review of the video game website Kotaku in 2019. The Post was eventually approved, according to two people familiar with the matter. (Kotaku was part of the sale of Gizmodo Media Group by Univision to Great Hill Partners.) The Post later that year launched its own video game and electronic sports section, Launcher, funded by GEICO.
Company executives also considered buying Decision Desk HQ, the election reporting service, but did not seek an agreement, a source said.
A spokesman said there were never active discussions with Kotaku, Decision Desk or the Herald.
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Although it was only a small (relatively speaking) purchase of $ 250 million for the richest man in the world, the Post acquisition was incredibly successful. The newspaper reached its fifth consecutive year of profitability in 2020 and plans to add 150 positions in 2021. It is also emerging from a period of journalistic glory after drilling through the tumultuous Trump administration.
“I think the Post has given Bezos some of the best public relations he has had in years,” said a Post official.
Bezos has been a largely indirect owner, but one way to get involved is by choosing a successor for Barão, who will leave the company at the end of the month. Possible candidates presented include former editor-in-chief Kevin Merida and current national editor Steven Ginsberg. Employees are also preparing for the possibility of a surprise external hiring.
A journalism titan who became more famous after being played by Liev Schreiber in the movie “Spotlight”, Baron insures the Post’s writing that it will be difficult for a new editor.
Post sources said that in pre-pandemic times Ryan was known to meet Baron at Baron’s office, with the editor facing the newsroom and keeping an eye on things. Baron also kept Bezos at bay on news matters – something that may be more difficult for the next successor.
“Marty was very respectful of Jeff, but very uninterested in talking about editorial strategy,” said a Post source.