Longtime Washington Post columnist Joe Davidson resigned, criticizing growing editorial constraints under owner Jeff Bezos, specifically an 'unwritten and inconsistently enforced policy' prohibiting opinion in News section articles. Davidson's departure, after 20 years at the paper, follows a trend of journalists leaving and plummeting subscriptions, which he attributes to Bezos's policies, including blocking a planned endorsement of Kamala Harris and a directive to promote 'personal liberties and free markets.'
Longtime Washington Post columnist quits paper, slams growing editorial constraints under Bezos
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TL;DR: Key points with love ❤️Longtime Washington Post columnist Joe Davidson resigned, criticizing growing editorial constraints under owner Jeff Bezos, specifically an 'unwritten and inconsistently enforced policy' prohibiting opinion in News section articles. Davidson's departure, after 20 years at the paper, follows a trend of journalists leaving and plummeting subscriptions, which he attributes to Bezos's policies, including blocking a planned endorsement of Kamala Harris and a directive to promote 'personal liberties and free markets.'
Trending- 1 20 years: Joe Davidson's tenure at The Washington Post.
- 2 17 years: Davidson penned the 'Federal Insider' column.
- 3 October (unspecified year, likely 2024): Jeff Bezos blocked publication of a planned Post endorsement of Kamala Harris.
- 4 November (unspecified year, likely 2024): Presidential election.
- 5 February (unspecified year, likely 2025): Bezos announced his directive for the Post's editorial pages to promote 'personal liberties and free markets'.
- 6 Last month (June 2025): David Shipley resigned; Adam O'Neal was tapped to lead the opinion pages; Davidson wrote a farewell piece to Post readers.
- 7 Tuesday (July 8, 2025): Joe Davidson wrote his Facebook piece titled 'Quitting The Washington Post -- or did it quit me?'
- Joe Davidson's resignation from The Washington Post
- Continued 'fleeing journalists, plummeting morale and disappearing subscriptions' at the paper
- Less critical scrutiny of Trump in News section columns (according to Davidson)
- Mass exodus of paid subscribers and several resignations, including opinion editor David Shipley
What: Longtime Washington Post columnist Joe Davidson resigned from the paper.
When: Tuesday (July 8, 2025) (Davidson wrote his Facebook piece); last month (Davidson wrote a farewell piece); since October (Bezos blocked endorsement); February (Bezos announced directive).
Where: The Washington Post.
Why: Davidson's column was killed for being 'too opinionated' under a new, unwritten policy; he found the level of constraint unacceptable for a columnist and was troubled by inconsistencies in policy implementation; he attributes these issues to Jeff Bezos's policies and actions, including perceived coziness with Donald Trump and directives on editorial content.
How: Davidson announced his resignation on his Facebook page after a column was blocked and he found subsequent restrictions too severe for his role as a columnist.