Washington Post publisher Will Lewis says he’s stepping down, days after big layoffs at the paper

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Briefing Summary

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NEWSAR · AI

Will Lewis is stepping down as publisher of The Washington Post days after the newspaper announced layoffs of one-third of its staff. Lewis announced his departure in an email to staff, citing "difficult decisions" needed to ensure the Post's future. Neither Lewis nor owner Jeff Bezos attended the meeting announcing the layoffs. Jeff D’Onofrio, the Post’s chief financial officer who joined the company in June, has been named acting publisher and CEO. The announcement comes amid protests outside the Washington Post office following the mass layoff.

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Key claims

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The Post’s chief financial officer, Jeff D’Onofrio, was named acting publisher and CEO.

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Difficult decisions have been taken in order to ensure the sustainable future of The Post.

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The newspaper said that it was laying off one-third of its staff.

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Washington Post publisher Will Lewis said Saturday that he’s stepping down.

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The Post also lost tens of thousand of subscribers following Bezos’ order late in the presidential campaign.

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Full report

3 min read · 537 words

Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post publisher Will Lewis says he’s stepping down, days after big layoffs at the paper 1 of 4 | Will Lewis, publisher and CEO of The Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post, poses for a portrait in Washington, Sunday, Nov. 5, 2023. (Matt McClain/The Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post via AP, File) 2 of 4 | A protester holds a cutout of Jeff Bezos’ face outside of the Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post office following a mass layoff, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert) 3 of 4 | Protesters outside of the Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post office demonstrate following a mass layoff, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert) 4 of 4 | Protesters outside of the Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post office demonstrate following a mass layoff, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert) 1 of 4 Will Lewis, publisher and CEO of The Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post, poses for a portrait in Washington, Sunday, Nov. 5, 2023. (Matt McClain/The Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post via AP, File) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 2 of 4 A protester holds a cutout of Jeff Bezos’ face outside of the Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post office following a mass layoff, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 3 of 4 Protesters outside of the Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post office demonstrate following a mass layoff, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. 4 of 4 Protesters outside of the Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post office demonstrate following a mass layoff, Thursday, Feb. 5, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert) Add AP News on Google Add AP News as your preferred source to see more of our stories on Google. Updated [hour]:[minute] [AMPM] [timezone], [monthFull] [day], [year] Washington-post" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="7255" data-entity-type="organization">Washington Post publisher Will Lewis said Saturday that he’s stepping down, three days after the troubled newspaper said that it was laying off one-third of its staff.Lewis sent an email to the Post’s staff, saying that “difficult decisions have been taken in order to ensure the sustainable future of The Post.” Lewis and the newspaper’s billionaire owner Jeff Bezos, did not participate in a meeting with staff announcing the layoffs this week.The Post’s chief financial officer, Jeff D’Onofrio, was named acting publisher and CEO. He joined the newspaper only last June.The British-born Lewis was a former top executive at The Wall Street Journal before taking over at The Post in January 2024. His tenure has been rocky from the start, marked by layoffs and a failed reorganization plan that led to the departure of former top editor Sally Buzbee. The Post also lost tens of thousand of subscribers following Bezos’ order late in the presidential campaign pulling back an expected endorsement of Kamala Harris for president, and subsequent changes to turn the editorial pages in a more conservative direction.While anticipated, this past week’s layoffs were deeper than anticipated, resulting in the shutting down of the Post’s renowned sports section, sharp cutbacks in foreign and metro coverage, and the laying off of its photographic staff.

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