Washington Post Journalists Resign from Editorial Board in Protest
In a significant move, two prominent journalists from The Washington Post’s editorial board announced their resignation on Monday, driven by their discontent with the newspaper’s owner, Jeff Bezos, for opting not to endorse a presidential candidate in the upcoming election. Both David Hoffman and Molly Roberts expressed their intentions to remain with the paper in different capacities.
David Hoffman, a veteran journalist who has dedicated over four decades to The Post since 1982, alongside Roberts, articulated their belief that the newspaper should endorse Vice President Kamala Harris. They view the candidacy of former President Donald J. Trump as a serious threat to American democracy.
In a heartfelt letter to the opinion department’s editor, David Shipley, Hoffman stated, “I believe we face a very real threat of autocracy in the candidacy of Donald Trump. I find it untenable and unconscionable that we have lost our voice at this perilous moment.” His resignation follows a recent ceremony where he was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for editorial writing, recognizing his insightful series on authoritarian regimes suppressing dissent. Hoffman affirmed his commitment to continue working on various projects, particularly those aimed at enhancing press freedom globally.
Molly Roberts, another editorial board member, echoed these sentiments in a post on X, emphasizing the core mission of an editorial board. She stated, “The mission of an editorial board is simpler than it may seem: We want to make the country and the world a better place by supporting the best candidate or the best policy, and condemning the worst. We want to change minds. But above all else, we want to write with moral clarity. If we can’t do that, what are we doing at all?”
Roberts further emphasized that endorsing Kamala Harris over Donald Trump was a matter of moral clarity, stating that the decision was, “about as morally clear as it gets.” This bold stance reflects a deep concern for the future of democracy and the role of the press in political discourse.
