For the last several years, The Washington Post has sat out the deal fervor that has swept through much of the media industry.

The Post’s new chief executive, Will Lewis, appears interested in changing that.

Mr. Lewis, who took over in January, has told confidants that he has a mandate from the company’s owner, Jeff Bezos, to grow the newspaper, including through acquisitions, three people familiar with the matter said. In recent months, the company’s head of corporate development has met with a variety of technology and media companies, exploring deals that could help The Post expand its revenue and subscriptions, one of the people said.

In scouting for deals, The Post is following in the footsteps of other media companies, including The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, that have bought companies that complement their core news businesses, the three people said. The overall goal is to create a growing subscription-based business that is insulated from the vagaries of the news cycle, which can wax and wane throughout the year.

Mr. Lewis, who founded The News Movement — a social media-focused publisher aimed at Gen Z — is also said to be interested in acquiring a company that produces video, two of the people said.

In recent months, Peter Elkins-Williams, The Post’s head of partnerships and corporate development, sat down with executives at Punchbowl News, a start-up that has parleyed its obsessive following in the halls of Congress to a robust subscription business and a valuation of more than $100 million, according to two people familiar with the talks.

Mr. Elkins-Williams didn’t propose a deal, according to the two people, and The Post has not made an offer since then. But the outreach is a sign of The Post’s resurgent ambitions under Mr. Lewis, the two people said.