The Washington Post has experienced a significant decline in subscribers, losing approximately 250,000 since its announcement last Friday that it would refrain from endorsing a presidential candidate, which amounts to nearly 10 percent of its digital reader base, as reported on Wednesday.
Although the newspaper’s management has not officially verified this figure, it was mentioned in an internal report referencing documents and insights from two anonymous sources familiar with the statistics. Additionally, a similar non-endorsement from the Los Angeles Times also led to a number of subscription cancellations, though not at the scale seen by the Post.
Journalism historian Jon Marshall from Northwestern University expressed that he struggled to find a comparable reaction in the past. He referenced the boycott of the Arkansas Gazette in 1957, which supported the integration of Little Rock schools and subsequently cost the publication over $20 million in today’s economic context.
Jeff Bezos, the owner of The Post, explained that endorsing a presidential candidate could project an image of bias and typically does not significantly affect readers’ voting decisions. Bezos indicated that his only regret was announcing the decision in such a heated political climate, especially since the editorial team had prepared an endorsement for Democrat Kamala Harris prior to this announcement.
Media critic Erik Wemple suggested that had the paper not recently publicized its decision not to publish the Harris endorsement, interest in it might have faded over time.
Matt Murray, the executive editor, noted in a staff meeting that they observed “several positive days” with new subscriber sign-ups, although specific numbers were not disclosed.
Meanwhile, several of the Post’s frustrated digital subscribers had pre-paid for annual access; these users will continue to have their subscriptions until they expire.
Rick Edmonds, a media business analyst at the Poynter Institute, theorized that once the election season concludes, some readers might reassess their need for the Post’s content, leading them to return to the publication.
The Post had previously seen a notable increase in subscriptions during Donald Trump’s presidency, attracting readers with its assertive journalism. This development raises the potential for a similar surge in interest should Trump regain office, despite the current backlash against the paper’s lack of endorsement.
Edmonds acknowledged the current situation as “very bad,” noting that after suffering subscriber losses during the Biden administration, the Post appeared to be on an upward trajectory—until this latest controversy emerged.
