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It is very difficult to believe Bezos' personal political beliefs would have zero impact on the content WaPo chooses to publish or promote and who they choose t
by Alupis 4y ago
It is very difficult to believe Bezos' personal political beliefs would have zero impact on the content WaPo chooses to publish or promote and who they choose to hire.
It may not be overt, but what they choose to publish is just as powerful as what they choose not to publish, and there have been some very high profile stories that were deliberately not published in the WaPo.
- HWR_14 4y agoI don't see why. The biggest news story you can find about Bezos being involved in the Post is when he personally delivered a birthday president to the executive editor when he turned 65. Meanwhile, the Columbia Review of Journalism (a well-respected academic source) reported in 2021 that the Post is uninfluenced by Bezos. They point out the many negative articles about Amazon and otherwise against Bezos's interests.
- Alupis 4y agoBezos doesn't have to call the editor to exert influence, or give input on every hire. It's a Bezos company now, and just like all the other Bezos companies, it will consider it's owner's desired outcome before taking action. Just flip the idea on it's head - would Bezos be happy if WaPo suddenly became a right-leaning publication tomorrow? Probably not... he might actually pick up a phone then but I digress. The influence is implicit and persistent. There is no reason to own a newspaper other than influence. It's been that way probably forever...
- HWR_14 4y ago> There is no reason to own a newspaper other than influence. Actually, again, academic analysis suggest there are two primary reasons rich people buy media outlets. One is for influence (like Murdock) and the other is for prestige (like they would buy a Van Gogh or a wing at the ballet). > would Bezos be happy if WaPo suddenly became a right-leaning publication tomorrow? Probably not. Those are far lower in prestige. In much the same way that people donating to an opera company would be upset if they primarily decided to use their venue for open-mic nights.
- MichaelCollins 4y ago> It's been that way probably forever... It's the reason Benjamin Franklin founded and ran various newspapers, including America's first German-language newspaper. He was trying to drum up support for the Revolution.
- lupire 4y agoInteresting theory. Can you find any evidence?
- atlgator 4y agoThis whole conversation is predicated on zero evidence.
- Wowfunhappy 4y ago> and there have been some very high profile stories that were deliberately not published in the WaPo. What stories are you thinking of here?
- Alupis 4y agoI'm not looking to make this a political thing. It should suffice to say all media organizations are political and have an angle for every story they report or don't report. The language chosen, how the story is framed, how opposing opinions are presented, etc. It all shapes the story. Even the fabled NPR has a pretty extreme political view they want you to accept. The WaPo is not different, and Bezos (and people like Bezos) only buy media organizations for the influence they provide.
- lupire 4y agoYou are making vague accusations but not saying anything concrete. You sound like Senator Joe McCarthy.
- yongjik 4y agoIn a sense, the fact that we're debating whether Bezos's personal beliefs influenced The Washington Post or not is already a point in favor of Bezos. If he was like Musk, we'd be instead arguing "When Bezos ordered The Washington Post to run a full-page announcement titled 'If you unsubscribe from The Washington Post you are racist,' was Bezos out of line?"