Business & Tech
Amazon CEO to Buy Washington Post for $250 Million
Post employees were told the news at 4:30 p.m. Monday.
By Mary Ann Barton
The Washington Post announced Monday it will be sold to Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com, for $250 million.
Publisher and CEO Katharine Weymouth, a granddaughter of Katharine Graham, made the announcement to Washington Postemployees at 4:30 p.m. Monday.
The sale will end the reign of the Graham family as owners of the fabled paper, which has reported some of the biggest stories in journalism — from Watergate to the Pentagon Papers.
The news that the historic Washington newspaper is being sold sent shockwaves through the Twitterverse Monday afternoon.
Andrew Beaujon @abeaujon wrote, "'The values of The Post do not need changing,' Bezos says in letter to employees."
Jeff Jarvis @jeffjarvis wrote, "The obvious response to a Bezos Post will be the presumption of pay walls. But what he *really* knows is personal service."
"Every member of my family started out with the same emotion - shock - in even thinking about [selling The Post]," said Donald Graham, the Post Co.’s chief executive, in an interview Monday with the Post's own media reporter. “But when the idea of a transaction with Jeff Bezos came up, it altered my feelings.”
The paper reported that "with extraordinary secrecy, Graham hired the investment firm Allen & Co. to shop the paper, company executives said. Allen’s representatives spoke with a half-dozen potential suitors before the Post Co.’s board settled on Bezos, 49, a legendary tech innovator who has never operated a newspaper."
Aside from The Post, and the newspaper's website, the Washington Post Co.’s newspaper division includes the Fairfax County Times, which publishes Northern Virginia and Fairfax County news weekly, along with the Gazette, which publishes weekly editions throughout Montgomery and Prince George's counties, the Post reported.
Other publications involved in the sale: "the Express newspaper ... Southern Maryland Newspapers in suburban Washington, the Spanish-language El Tiempo Latino newspaper, and the Robinson Terminal production plant in Springfield. Bezos will also purchase the Comprint printing operation in Gaithersburg, which publishes several military publications," The Post reported.
Patch Editor Sean R. Sedam contributed to this report.
What do you think of the Post's sale to the Amazon CEO? Tell us in the comments.
The Washington Post announced Monday it will be sold to Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon.com, for $250 million.
Publisher and CEO Katharine Weymouth, a granddaughter of Katharine Graham, made the announcement to Washington Postemployees at 4:30 p.m. Monday.
The sale will end the reign of the Graham family as owners of the fabled paper, which has reported some of the biggest stories in journalism — from Watergate to the Pentagon Papers.
The news that the historic Washington newspaper is being sold sent shockwaves through the Twitterverse Monday afternoon.
Andrew Beaujon @abeaujon wrote, "'The values of The Post do not need changing,' Bezos says in letter to employees."
Jeff Jarvis @jeffjarvis wrote, "The obvious response to a Bezos Post will be the presumption of pay walls. But what he *really* knows is personal service."
"Every member of my family started out with the same emotion - shock - in even thinking about [selling The Post]," said Donald Graham, the Post Co.’s chief executive, in an interview Monday with the Post's own media reporter. “But when the idea of a transaction with Jeff Bezos came up, it altered my feelings.”
The paper reported that "with extraordinary secrecy, Graham hired the investment firm Allen & Co. to shop the paper, company executives said. Allen’s representatives spoke with a half-dozen potential suitors before the Post Co.’s board settled on Bezos, 49, a legendary tech innovator who has never operated a newspaper."
Aside from The Post, and the newspaper's website, the Washington Post Co.’s newspaper division includes the Fairfax County Times, which publishes Northern Virginia and Fairfax County news weekly, along with the Gazette, which publishes weekly editions throughout Montgomery and Prince George's counties, the Post reported.
Other publications involved in the sale: "the Express newspaper ... Southern Maryland Newspapers in suburban Washington, the Spanish-language El Tiempo Latino newspaper, and the Robinson Terminal production plant in Springfield. Bezos will also purchase the Comprint printing operation in Gaithersburg, which publishes several military publications," The Post reported.
Patch Editor Sean R. Sedam contributed to this report.
What do you think of the Post's sale to the Amazon CEO? Tell us in the comments.
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