The man tapped to become the top editor of the Washington Post is no longer going to join the media outlet, the paper said on June 21.
“It is with regret that I share with you that Robert Winnett has withdrawn from the position of Editor at The Washington Post,” William Lewis, CEO and publisher of the Post, wrote in a note to staffers.
Mr. Winnett is remaining at The Daily Telegraph, a British paper, he said.
“We will immediately launch a new search for Editor of our core coverage. We will soon announce both the recruiting firm and process we will utilize to ensure a timely but thorough search for this important leadership role,” Mr. Lewis wrote.
Mr. Winnett, the Telegraph’s deputy editor, could not be reached.
Mr. Lewis, 55, is a native of England who was editor of the Telegraph from 2006 to 2009.
He hired Mr. Winnett to be the Post’s top editor after Sally Buzbee, the paper’s executive editor, resigned rather than take the position.
Matt Murray, former editor-in-chief of the Wall Street Journal, will remain the Post’s executive editor until after the November presidential election, according to Mr. Lewis.
Mr. Winnett was set to become the editor, a new position, starting after the election, the Post said in a press release dated June 2. The paper said at the time he “has an excellent track record in investigative reporting, delivering scoops and leading significant newsroom transformations.”
The Washington Post, which is owned by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, has been losing money in recent years. Mr. Lewis informed employees in May that the company lost $77 million over the past year. “To speak candidly: We are in a hole, and we have been for some time,” he said, the Post reported. He called the situation “repairable.”
Mr. Bezos said in an email to senior editors on Tuesday that he’s committed to “maintaining the quality, ethics, and standards we all believe in.” He said “we do need to change as a business” but that the Post’s journalistic standards would not change.
Mr. Lewis plans to unveil a new division of the newsroom to try to rectify the financial situation, according to the company.
It said in a statement the division “will be comprised of service and social media journalism and run separately from the core news operation,” with a goal of giving Americans “who feel traditional news is not for them but still want to be kept informed compelling, exciting and accurate news where they are and in the style that they want.”
The new division is slated to be fully rolled out in early 2025, Mr. Lewis said on Friday.
