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(150,929 posts) Mon Mar 10, 2025, 06:32 PM Mar 10

Exclusive: Washington Post to overhaul newsroom structure

Source: Axios

8 hours ago

The Washington Post is making major changes to its newsroom that are meant to broaden the outlet's coverage and reach a wider audience, according to a staff memo from executive editor Matt Murray obtained by Axios.

Why it matters: The shifts follow months of high-profile staff departures and blowback to recent opinion coverage changes by owner Jeff Bezos.

Longtime Post opinion editor and columnist Ruth Marcus resigned from the Post Monday after CEO Will Lewis killed her column expressing concerns about Bezos' opinion section changes.
Former Washington Post executive editor Marty Baron penned a scathing piece about the changes last week.

Zoom in: As part of the newsroom overhaul, the Post will divide its national desk into two sections that focus on national reporting, and politics and government coverage, respectively.

The politics and government desk "will encompass most of our reporters and editors covering the political scene and the government, which remain a central pillar for The Post," Murray wrote. "The Economics and Economic Policy team from Business will move to this department."
The national desk, "which incorporates the America team, the education team, and the GA desk in Washington, will have a remit to cover the United States and important issues and figures outside of Washington and across the country more broadly," he added.
Business, technology, health, science and climate teams will be brought together "in a new department that focuses on "how businesses are transforming across the economy; how scientific and technological shifts are affecting daily life; and what it all means for people's health, security and the planet," Murray said.
New department head roles for each new desk will be posted shortly, Murray said. Murray hopes all newsroom changes are in place by no later than May 5.

Zoom out: The shifts are also meant to prioritize digital products and reader engagement, Murray said.

Each reorganized department will have its own senior editor for audience growth and a senior editor for visuals.
Murray is hiring a head of print to "ring-fence print from the rest of the newsroom and make it completely downstream, so the majority of us can focus our efforts on our growing digital products."

"Text will no longer be a default (format) and length no more a reflexive measure of quality," he said.