February 5, 2026 – 7:30 AM
A person walks past The Washington Post headquarters, after the Post announced it was starting widespread layoffs in Washington, D.C., U.S., February 4, 2026. (Reuters/Aaron Schwartz)
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Executive Editor announces layoffs in a company-wide call
Post says it is taking ‘difficult but decisive actions’
A third of company’s employees affected by layoffs
The Washington Post, owned by Amazon.com
AMZN.O
One Post reporter, speaking on condition of anonymity, called the newly announced layoffs a “bloodbath.”
The impacted journalists include Amazon beat reporter Caroline O’Donovan, Cairo Bureau Chief Claire Parker and the rest of the Post’s Middle East correspondents and editors, according to X posts from O’Donovan and Parker.
“The Washington Post is taking a number of difficult but decisive actions today for our future, in what amounts to a significant restructuring across the company,” the Post said in a statement. “These steps are designed to strengthen our footing and sharpen our focus on delivering the distinctive journalism that sets The Post apart and, most importantly, engages our customers.”
All departments impacted
Its 2025 paid average daily circulation was 97,000, with roughly 160,000 on Sundays, representing a steep decline from its 250,000 average daily circulation in 2020, according to data from the Alliance for Audited Media.
“If Jeff Bezos is no longer willing to invest in the mission that has defined this paper for generations and serve the millions who depend on Post journalism, then The Post deserves a steward that will,” the Washington Post Guild, another union that represents Post employees, said on X.
Murray said on Wednesday’s call that all Post departments are impacted by the cuts.
Bezos said at the time he bought the Post that he would preserve its journalistic tradition and would not lead its day-to-day operations. But there “will, of course, be change” over the coming years, Bezos added.
Clashes with journalists
Bezos was among the several tech executives seen as making overtures to U.S. President Donald Trump last year. Bezos was seated prominently at Trump’s inauguration, underscoring his shifting ties.
Trump was a critic of Bezos during his first term in office over what the Republican president called unfair coverage by The Post. Trump praised the tech billionaire in March 2025, saying Bezos was doing “a real job” with the publication.
“Today’s layoffs at the Washington Post are a devastating setback for the scores of individual journalists affected and for the journalism profession,” National Press Club President Mark Schoeff Jr. said in a statement.
—Reporting by Helen Coster in New York and Jaspreet Singh and Kritika Lamba in Bengaluru; Editing by Will Dunham, Tasim Zahid, Arun Koyyur and Nick Zieminski
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Caroline O’Donovan
Claire Parker
Jeff Bezos
Los Angeles Times
Matt Murray
The Washington Post
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