The Washington Post Co. has agreed to sell its flagship newspaper to Amazon.com founder and chief executive Jeffrey P. Bezos, ending the Graham family’s stewardship of one of America’s leading news organizations after four generations.
The deal is worth $250 million in cash. On the surface, it seems like an odd move by Bezos—the Washington Post has been on a steady decline for the last few years—but he’s obviously no dummy.
I have no doubt there’s a plan behind the scenes to deliver the paper in future with digital distribution via Amazon. Also worth thinking about: ownership also gives Amazon a respected media mouthpiece to beef up their US political lobbying muscle for the future.
Strange times.