The Upcoming
  • Culture
    • Art
    • Cinema
      • Movie reviews
      • Film festivals
    • Food & Drinks
      • News & Features
      • Restaurant & bar reviews
      • Interviews & Recipes
    • Literature
    • Music
      • Live music
    • Theatre
    • Shows & On demand
  • Fashion & Lifestyle
    • Accessories
    • Beauty
    • News & Features
    • Shopping & Trends
    • Tips & How-tos
    • Fashion weeks
  • What’s On
    • Art exhibitions
    • Theatre shows
  • Tickets
  • Join us
    • Editorial unit
    • Our writers
    • Join the team
    • Join the mailing list
    • Support us
    • Contact us
  • Interviews
  • Competitions
  • Special events
    • Film festivals
      • Berlin
      • Tribeca
      • Sundance London
      • Cannes
      • Locarno
      • Venice
      • London
      • Toronto
    • Fashion weeks
      • London Fashion Week
      • New York Fashion Week
      • Milan Fashion Week
      • Paris Fashion Week
      • Haute Couture
      • London Fashion Week Men’s
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Instagram

  • YouTube

  • Tumblr

  • RSS

Current affairsNews

Amazon boss purchases Washington Post

Amazon boss purchases Washington Post
6 August 2013
Camilla Capasso
Camilla Capasso
Avatar
Camilla Capasso
6 August 2013

The Washington Post, one of America’s most influential newspapers, will be sold to the founder of Amazon.com, Jeffrey P Bezos, for $250 million.

For decades, The Washington Post has gained worldwide attention thanks to news stories that have changed the course of history, like the Watergate scandal in the 1972 and, more recently, the disclosures about the National Security Agency (NSA) surveillance programs.

The Post’s chairman and chief executive, Donald E. Graham, whose family has owned the newspaper for more than 80 years, explained that The Post has suffered from the financial crisis of the last decade. According to Graham, the rise of the Internet has created a wave of competition for traditional news companies, which was impossible for the paper to withstand. 

At a meeting of employees, Graham tried to explain his position, saying: “The Post could have survived under the company’s ownership and been profitable for the foreseeable future, but we wanted to do more than survive. I’m not saying this guarantees success, but it gives us a much greater chance of success.”

The initiative for the sale came from the Graham family and not from Bezos, who was chosen between six potential suitors. Amazon will have no role in the purchase and Bezos will be the only owner of the organisation within the next 60 days, when the sale will be completed.

Bezos made a statement after the announcement of the sale, saying that this is uncharted territory for him and requires experimentation, but that values of the paper don’t need changing. He explained: “The duty of the paper is to the readers, not the owners.”

Bezos had already shown an interest in the media before, when, some months ago, he invested $5 million in Business Insider, a US business and technology news website.

Considering Amazon’s success in the past years, Bezos is likely to be aware of the similarities between the digital news business and his own e-commercial interests. He will be sensitive to the fact that making the news industry complementary to Amazon might pave the way to a new profitable business. 

Camilla Capasso

Related Items

More in Current Affairs

Nek brings Italian pop rock to the Shepherd’s Bush Empire

The editorial unit
Read More

Why Equity Linked Savings Schemes is a preferred tax saving?

The editorial unit
Read More

How the world’s top designers would rebrand political parties

The editorial unit
Read More

Royal baby furore: Proof that the British monarchy is still popular?

Eoin O’Sullivan-Harris
Read More

World Mental Health Day 2018: Raising awareness and combating stigma

The editorial unit
Read More

Seven political personalities you should know about

The editorial unit
Read More

Donald Trump: An enemy of the arts?

The editorial unit
Read More

Trump’s fortune: Where did the money come from?

The editorial unit
Read More

Snapchat Spectacles come to the UK

The editorial unit
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap

Tickets

Theatre tickets

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • TOP PICKS

  • Secret Cinema Presents Stranger Things: An uncanny, immersive delight
    Cinema
  • Three Sisters at the National Theatre
    Theatre
  • Five of the best Christmas afternoon teas in London
    Food & Drinks
  • IT London in Mayfair: Authentic and refined Italian dishes in a swanky restaurant
    ★★★★★
    Food & Drinks
  • The Duchess of Malfi at Almeida Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • The Ocean at the End of the Lane at the National Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • “Sting always makes me want to choreograph”: An interview with ZooNation director Kate Prince
    Theatre
  • A Kind of People at the Royal Court Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • IT London in Mayfair: Authentic and refined Italian dishes in a swanky restaurant
    ★★★★★
    Food & Drinks
  • Thriller Live at Lyric Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • The Ocean at the End of the Lane at the National Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • IT London in Mayfair: Authentic and refined Italian dishes in a swanky restaurant
    ★★★★★
    Food & Drinks
  • The Snow Queen at Park Theatre
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
  • Three Sisters at the National Theatre
    Theatre
  • A Taste of Honey at Trafalgar Studios
    ★★★★★
    Theatre
The Upcoming
Pages
  • Contact us
  • Join mailing list
  • Join us
  • Our London food map
  • Our writers
  • Support us
  • What, when, why

Copyright © 2018 FL Media Ltd

Row continues as fracking is described as “biggest threat to the countryside”‏
Obama criticises Russia for harbouring Edward Snowden