The Washington Post’s former executive editor, Martin Baron, slammed the paper three years after his retirement over its refusal to endorse a candidate for president, following a similar wave of criticism and multiple resignations after the Los Angeles Times’ owner blocked an endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris.
The paper has consistently offered presidential endorsements since 1976. (Photo by ERIC BARADAT/AFP ... [+]
Baron called the paper’s decision “cowardice” and said former President Donald Trump would see it as an “invitation to further intimidate” the Post’s owner, billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos.
The Post’s publisher and chief executive officer, William Lewis, announced in a statement Friday morning the paper is “returning to our roots of not endorsing presidential candidates”, ending nearly 50 years of consistent presidential endorsements dating back to 1976.
Lewis preemptively denied accusations that the lack of endorsement is a “tacit endorsement of one candidate” or a “condemnation of another,” stating he supports readers making their own decisions.
The refusal to make an endorsement comes as the presidential race appears increasingly neck-and-neck as most polls show an essentially tied race between Harris and Trump, including a deadlocked 48%-48% poll among likely voters released Friday by the New York Times.
Mariel Garza, who was until days ago the Los Angeles Times’ editorials editor, said she resigned from her post in protest after the paper’s owner, billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, blocked an endorsement the editorial board had planned to make for Harris. Soon-Shiong appeared to push back in a social media post, in which he claimed the editorial board was asked to “draft a factual analysis of all the POSITIVE AND NEGATIVE policies by EACH candidate” so readers could make an informed decision, but claimed the board did not follow through. Editorial board members Robert Greene, a Pulitzer Prize winner, and Karin Klein also resigned in protest, with both citing their disappointment over the blocked endorsement.
On political endorsement (The Washington Post)