On December 14 (local time), The Washington Post publisher Fred Ryan announced during a meeting with the employees that the company would eliminate some positions in 2023. Some of these positions would be from the newsroom. Ryan added that steps were being taken to expand the company’s coverage areas. Notably, less than a week ago, it was reported that WaPo had lost over 500,000 subscribers since President Biden started his tenure.
Furthermore, the layoffs will be in a single-digit percentage, and it would not be affected in terms of overall headcount in the newsroom as WaPo would hire more people in other areas. Currently, there are over 2,500 employees in the company. WaPo’s report suggested that Ryan said the layoffs would be for the positions that are “no longer serving readers”. It is unclear if WaPo will continue to pay authors like Rana Ayyub, who are not regular contributors.
As per reports, Ryan informed the employees about the layoffs during a town hall meeting. Videos available on social media platforms show that Ryan stepped off the stage when confronted by the employees with follow-up questions about the same.
NEW: @washingtonpost publisher Fred Ryan refuses to take staff questions after announcing Q1 layoffs in “Town Hall” @postguild pic.twitter.com/C4HOXb6y2C
— Annie Gowen (@anniegowen) December 14, 2022
After the meeting, Washington Post Guild leaders expressed anguish over the “unceremonious announcement”. Furthermore, the leaders and employees were “outraged” as Ryan refused to take questions. A statement by the Guild read, “This behaviour is unacceptable from any leader, but especially the leader of a news organization whose core values include transparency and accountability. There is no justification for The Post to lay off employees during record growth and hiring.”
In its statement, WaPo said that the layoffs were part of a plan to “invest in coverage, products, and people in service of providing high value to our subscribers and new audiences. The Washington Post is evolving and transforming to put our business in the best position for future growth.”
After the town hall meeting, Ryan reportedly emailed the staff and explained the situation. As per The New York Times report, he wrote that he recognized that the announcement would “understandably generate a great deal of uncertainty across our organization.” NYT report further suggested that when President Trump was in office, WaPo’s digital subscriber base expanded; however, post his tenure, the company has struggled to expand it further.
WaPo’s report suggested that Ryan informed the employees in his email that the layoffs did not mean the company was scaling back its ambitions. However, “like any business, The Post cannot keep investing resources in initiatives that do not meet our customers’ needs,” he added.
In addition to a lower subscriber base rise, WaPo is reportedly struggling with the downturn in the advertising market. Media houses across the United States have recently seen a steep fall in revenue from advertisements. To add to the agony, WaPo recently announced it would close the print edition of its standalone magazine. The ten employees linked to the magazines would leave the company. The last issue of the magazine is planned for December 25.
In recent months, Chief Information Officer Shailesh Prakash, Chief Communication Officer Kris Coratti, Chief Product Officer Kat Downs, and Vice President of Audience Development and Analytics Beth Diaz have left the company. In addition to these key people, Managing Editor Steve Ginsberg has also announced his departure as he would join NYT as Executive Editor of The Athletic in January 2023. Reports suggest that employees at WaPo have raised questions about the company’s business strategies and work-from-home policy.
Following Ryan’s announcement about the layoffs, WaPo’s writers have approached Union, saying they wanted to join. The names listed by NYT who called the Union include Ashley Parker, Josh Dawsey, Jose Del Real, Shane Harris, John Woodrow Cox and Tyler Pager.
Apart from WaPo, CNN, Vox Media, and Gannett have reduced the workforce at their offices.
