Washington Post to lay off 1-3rd staff after Trump's federal workforce cutbacks' coverage

The Washington Post has begun laying off nearly one-third of its staff as part of a major restructuring to cut costs and refocus operations.

The Washington Post is laying off one-third of its staff in the newsroom and other departments, a brutal blow at one of journalism's most legendary brands.

The troubled Post began implementing large-scale cutbacks on Wednesday, including eliminating its sports department and shrinking the number of journalists it stations overseas. The changes were announced by executive editor Matt Murray in a Zoom meeting with staff.

The staff reduction is a significant psychic blow at the Post, known in history books for its Watergate revelations and most recently for aggressive coverage of President Donald Trump’s cutbacks to the federal workforce, and for journalism in general.

Staff members in the newsroom were told they would be getting emails with one of two subject lines, announcing that the person’s role has or hasn’t been eliminated. A Post representative confirmed that one-third of the staff would be cut, without saying how many total employees the newspaper has.

The newspaper’s books department will be closed, and its Washington-area news department and editing staff will be restructured, Murray told staff members. Its Post Reports podcast will be suspended.

Murray acknowledged that the cuts will be a shock to the system but said the goal is to create a Post that can grow and thrive again.