Investors believe Amazon founder Jeff Bezos could sell the Washington Post to purchase the Washington Commanders football franchise.
Two investors believe the Washington Post is up for sale, with one planning to bid on the paper, the New York Post reported. Bezos met with senior staff during a visit to the Washington Post newsroom last week and said he had no plans to sell the paper, according to the New York Post.
Jeff Bezos will sell Washington Post to buy Commanders, investors says: sources https://t.co/Kq74uPW8TH pic.twitter.com/yLeVVQtOrc
— New York Post (@nypost) January 23, 2023
Washington Commanders owner Dan Synder reportedly hired Bank of America to auction the franchise, and the bank continues to court Bezos, despite Snyder’s reported displeasure with how the Washington Post covered allegations of workplace harassment in the Commanders organization, the New York Post reported.
Bezos did not submit an official bid to buy the franchise by the December deadline but is not out of the running, according to Front Porch Sports. Bezos reportedly planned a bid to purchase the Commanders alongside rapper and businessman Jay-Z, the New York Post reported.
Bezos purchased the Washington Post for $250 million in 2013 and oversaw a surge in subscribers during the Trump administration. The paper has seen a significant decrease in subscribers and digital traffic since the Trump administration ended in 2021, according to the Wall Street Journal. (RELATED: The Big Liberal Media Bloodbath Of 2022 Spills Into December)
Washington Post publisher Fred Ryan announced newsroom layoffs in a contentious December town hall meeting, according to the New York Times. The Washington Post was on track to lose money in 2022 and its digital ad revenue fell 15% from 2021 levels, the Times reported.
“The Washington Post is not for sale,” a company spokesperson told the Daily Caller. The paper also denied rumors that it was up for sale in December, following an Axios report that media mogul Michael Bloomberg is looking to buy either the the Washington Post or The Wall Street Journal.