Washington Post begins widespread layoffs, sharply shrinking paper’s reach

2026-02-05 - 00:36

The Washington Post began widespread layoffs on Wednesday, February 4, that will drastically shrink the size of the storied newspaper, affecting all departments, according to a recording of the call shared with Reuters. Executive editor Matt Murray informed the staff of the cuts, which will cut across the international, editing, metro, and sports desks, and come just days after the more than 145-year-old newspaper scaled back its coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics amid mounting financial losses. “For too long, we’ve operated with a structure that’s too rooted in the days when we were a quasi-monopoly local newspaper,” Murray said on the call, adding that “we need a new way forward and a sounder foundation.” One Post reporter, speaking on condition of anonymity, called it a “bloodbath.” The impacted journalists include Amazon beat reporter Caroline O’Donovan, Cairo Bureau Chief Claire Parker and the rest of