Bezos called – Jeff Bezos told President Trump in December 2024 that the Washington Post was his worst investment, saying “The people there are terrible” and that its leaders “don’t listen.” Within months, Bezos moved from complaints to action—ordering an opinion-promotion p
When Jeff Bezos spoke to President Trump over dinner in December 2024, he didn’t just complain about Washington. He framed the Washington Post as a financial and personal failure.
In a conversation described in a new book by New York Times journalists Jonathan Swan and Maggie Haberman, Bezos told Trump, “The people there are terrible.” He added that the Post’s leaders “don’t listen,” contrasting it with his other companies, which he said do listen.
Bezos’ frustration was tied to more than hurt pride. He focused his criticism on the business side of the publication after losing more than $100 million that year. And in the same dinner account, Trump complained about coverage—prompting Bezos to tell him the Post’s leaders “don’t listen” to him.
About two months later, Bezos ordered changes aimed directly at the paper’s influence. The Post’s opinion pages were directed to promote “two pillars: personal liberties and free markets.” The move landed as subscribers were peeling away in protest over the paper withholding its endorsement from Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris.
Then came the cuts.
Bezos authorized sweeping downsizing at the Washington Post this February, eliminating roughly a third of its workforce. The job losses included all staff photographers and the sports section. Before that broader shake-up. the paper had already begun trimming: in January 2025 it eliminated 4% of its staff. primarily in the ad department.
The pattern of emphasis and then contraction sits inside a wider political and business tension. Swan and Haberman describe Bezos’ candor with Trump as part of a push by major tech leaders to build closer ties with an incoming president—one who. during his four years in political exile. spent time railing against what he viewed as bias by news outlets and major internet platforms.
Trump’s own recollection of the dinner is sharper. The book says Trump told Bezos, “this Washington Post is really unfair. You’ve got to take better care.” Trump also told the authors that during his first term he “hated” Bezos. based on a mistaken belief that the billionaire controlled what the newspaper wrote. “He said they write stories about him. And I didn’t believe him the first time, first term. And I hated him for it,” Trump recalled. “And then I believed him.”.
Bezos, for his part, did not leave the damage in place. The book says Trump told it differently—that Bezos said he had lost half his friends over the investment. Swan and Haberman write that Bezos later told others the story wasn’t quite right: he hadn’t lost friends. but people close to him had urged him to sell the newspaper.
Inside the Post itself, leadership changes have added another layer of strain. A Washington Post spokesperson declined to comment, and it remains unclear how Bezos currently views the newspaper. Will Lewis. the paper’s former publisher and CEO. had been paid a $3 million salary and was tossed out shortly after this year’s mass firings for partying at the Super Bowl—prompting a firestorm of criticism over the optics.
Jeff D’Onofrio—who previously worked at CafeMedia and Tumblr—has replaced Lewis in an acting capacity. He said he is “going to fight like hell for this institution,” and recently approved new content and licensing deals to bring in revenue from OpenAI, Apple News+ and Alexa+.
The question now is what happens when private frustration becomes public policy. From dinner-table insults about “terrible” people and leaders who “don’t listen. ” to an opinion-page mandate and then a newsroom downsizing that eliminated roughly a third of staff. the Post’s transformation has moved fast—and readers will be left to feel the difference long after the boardroom language fades.
Jeff Bezos Washington Post Trump newsroom layoffs Regime Change opinion pages personal liberties and free markets Will Lewis Jeff D’Onofrio