The Graham family this week announced the sale of The Washington Post to Amazon founder Jeffrey Bezos for $250 million. Bezos will become the sole owner of The Washington Post, ending the Graham family's 80-year control over the newspaper. As one of the most influential media outlets in the United States, the sudden change of ownership of The Washington Post has left industry insiders stunned. Analysts believe that Bezos is the ideal boss for The Washington Post because he is wealthy and full of ideas. How will this visionary technology dreamer reshape the struggling Washington Post? What kind of sparks will occur when traditional media meets internet thinking?
Under the guidance of technology, will it be reborn?
On August 5, at a crowded staff meeting at the company headquarters in downtown Washington, Donald Graham, chairman and CEO of The Washington Post Company, and his niece Katharine Weymouth, publisher of The Washington Post, revealed the news of the newspaper's sale.
The atmosphere suddenly became quiet. Several veteran employees cried as Graham and Weymouth took turns reading statements and answering questions. "Everyone at the newspaper knows how much Donald and Katharine love this newspaper and how difficult this decision was for them," David Ignatius, a columnist who has worked at The Washington Post for many years, said on social networking site Twitter.
In addition to The Washington Post (and its website washingtonpost.com), the transaction also includes some other small media outlets such as The Express newspaper and The Dublin Gazette newspapers, etc. This deal does not include Slate online magazine or Foreign Affairs magazine under the Washington Post Company, nor does it involve the group company's television, real estate, education, and publishing businesses.
For The Washington Post, does this change of ownership represent a glimmer of hope? "This acquisition can be described as a 'marriage' between old media and new wealth, possibly a great opportunity for the combination of traditional print media and emerging media. The future of The Washington Post overall is optimistic," London City University journalism professor Roy Greenslade said in an interview with Southern Metropolis Daily.
American George Washington University retired professor of media and public affairs Christopher Sterling also believes that the new boss could bring vitality to The Washington Post, gaining rebirth under technological guidance. "From Bezos's performance at Amazon, from the perspective of journalism, he may be an ideal boss. It is well known that he successfully transformed Amazon into a low-profit, growth-oriented company. If he applies the same concept to the operation of The Washington Post, whether for business or not, it would be an outstanding example in the world."
A commercial transaction or a cultural declaration?
The Washington Post was founded in 1877 and has a history of 136 years. It has now developed into a publicly traded company including media and education - The Washington Post Company.
The Washington Post boasts impressive journalistic achievements. In 1972, two young reporters from the paper exposed the Watergate scandal, forcing U.S. President Richard Nixon to resign, becoming a widely recognized classic case of investigative journalism, and The Washington Post thus gained international prestige.
However, the rise of the Internet, and the epoch-making transformation from print publishing to digital technology, brought about a large-scale competition for traditional news organizations. In recent years, with traditional media gradually giving way to emerging media and online media dominating, venerable newspapers like The Washington Post have found themselves increasingly struggling. Since 2008, the paper has been in financial deficit, and many of its domestic offices in the United States have been closed.
Many people cannot help but ask, as a billionaire and CEO of Amazon, what did Bezos see in this 136-year-old newspaper that others did not? What is Bezos's investment purpose? Is it out of passion for journalism, to "play a hand" in the chaotic newspaper transactions, or to explore new paths for digital media?
He himself remained tight-lipped, various speculations surfaced, even The Washington Post itself could not be certain.
"I think Bezos is not for short-term profit goals. The profitability of The Washington Post has been declining for seven consecutive years, operating profits fell from $125.4 million in 2005 to $53.7 million in 2012. The prospects for print are bleak, and new media entrepreneurs like Bezos must surely understand this," Sterling said.
Regarding Bezos's acquisition motives, Greenslade believes that there is another point that cannot be overlooked, which is public service. "Some rich people believe that journalism is still beneficial to society, worrying about the end of traditional media. The acquisition of The Washington Post is more of a cultural declaration than a commercial transaction."
What will Bezos use to reshape the old newspaper?
The issue repeatedly emphasized in this acquisition transaction is that Bezos personally purchased The Washington Post, unrelated to Amazon. However, regarding whether there will be any disruptive innovative cooperation between the newspaper and Amazon in the future, it inevitably raises many speculations.
Although Bezos refused interview requests, in fact, he has already hinted in an open letter to employees that he feels "the need to create, therefore it is necessary to try." He also promised: "It is clear that The Washington Post will change significantly over the next few years."
But what truly draws attention is, what "tries" will he undertake?
The UK's The Guardian noted that some clues can be found in his open letter. Bezos hinted at two points: First, Bezos revealed how the Internet has changed almost every element of the news business, including "introducing new types of competition." In some of these competitions, the cost of news gathering is minimal or non-existent.
Secondly, Bezos pledged to follow The Washington Post tradition. Bezos's ability to follow news reporting regardless of cost is itself very courageous.
Although Bezos admitted in his open letter that he has no newspaper work experience, precisely this "layman" image has invigorated many people. It is well known that under his leadership, Amazon disrupted the development model of book publishing and newspapers through Kindle mobile devices. The American magazine The Atlantic Monthly analyzed that although The Washington Post will operate independently of Amazon, Bezos will undoubtedly apply the accumulated experience over many years to the newspaper field.
Is the "elegy" of print media really being sung?
Just three days before the news of The Washington Post's acquisition, The New York Times Group announced the sale of The Boston Globe to John Henry, the big boss of the Boston Red Sox Major League Baseball team, for $70 million. The successive changes of ownership of these two century-old newspapers have caused widespread sighs online.
Despite the heated mergers and acquisitions in the traditional media industry, there is still controversy over the future of this "sunset industry."
The Associated Press quoted analyst Doc Searls of publishing industry consulting firm Outsell as saying that Bezos's offer was quite generous, more out of moral considerations. But Greenslade believed that Bezos is not a philanthropist.
In fact, in the past two years, Warren Buffett has consecutively acquired at least 30 daily newspapers. Buffett believes that American society (especially communities) needs a good newspaper.
"This means three possibilities. First, investors like Buffett value not the immediate economic benefits of print media, but a certain social value; second, they attempt to play a more important role as owners of a public asset; third, print media, through integration with the Internet, can still bring returns to investors in the long run," Sterling said.
Supporters of print media pray that this is a reinvestment by the main beneficiaries of the gilded age in the construction of public knowledge. Looking at this cross-sector "marriage", we look forward to the tech elite Bezos bringing a magnificent turnaround to The Washington Post.
Major Events
In 1877, The Washington Post began formal publication, with an initial circulation of only ten thousand copies.
In 1889, Stilson Hutchins sold The Washington Post to former Postmaster General Frank Hatton and former Democratic Congressman from Ohio Willis Alonzo Wheeler.
In 1905, after the deaths of Hatton and Wheeler, John R. McLean, owner of The Cincinnati Enquirer, acquired The Washington Post.
In 1933, former Federal Reserve Chairman Eugene Meyer bought The Washington Post at a bankruptcy auction.
In 1946, Meyer's son-in-law Philip Graham inherited The Washington Post.
In 1963, after Philip Graham's death, control of the newspaper passed to his wife Katharine Graham.
In 1971, Katharine Graham led the public listing of The Washington Post Company.
In 1979, Katharine's son Donald Graham succeeded as publisher of The Washington Post.
In 2008, Katharine Graham's granddaughter Katharine Weymouth became publisher of The Washington Post.
In 2013, Amazon founder Bezos acquired The Washington Post for $250 million in cash.