Washington Post subscription case: Ex-editor claims Bezos struck secret ’quid-pro-quo’ deal with Donald Trump

The Washington Post, the second major US news outlet that recently refused to endorse any US presidential candidate in the upcoming polls is in the spotlight again. In a big revelation, former Washington Post editor Robert Kagan, who resigned on Friday, made big claims that the news daily struck a secret "quid-pro-quo" deal with former US President Donald Trump. This follows ‘The Los Angeles Times’ announcement about refusal to endorse any presidential candidate.

As Robert Kagan mentioned that ‘The Washington Post’ declined to endorse Democratic candidate despite the plan, he accused Amazon founder Jeff Bezos of colluding with Donald Trump. “Trump waited to make sure that Bezos did what he said he was going to do, and then met with the Blue Origin people,” Daily Beast quoted the editor-at-large as saying.

The Amazon owner who bought the news outlet in August 2013 has been accused of favouring Donald Trump as he put a stop to the planned endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris citing a return to ‘roots of not endorsing presidential candidates.’ The Post’s recent decision triggered cancellations of about 2,000 subscriptions in just 24 hours, many of them coming from loyal readers including prominent figures, The New York Post reported.

Renowned American novelist Stephen King, former White House aide to President Bill Clinton Keith Boykin and many other notable personalities called off their enrolment. Furthermore, caught amid controversy saw several resignations pouring in from staff members, including that of first prominent journalist, editor-at-large Robert Kagan.

In an interview with Daily Beast, Robert Kagan, who worked more than two decades with the publication, labelled the bombshell decision as an act of “cowardice” and alleged that the day the decision was announced, Donald Trump met Blue Origin executives, which validates his claims. Notably, Blue Origin is Jeff Bezos’s space venture.

In a major turn of events, a statement from Washington Post CEO William Lewis came in after rumours surfaced that Jeff Bezos personally blocked the endorsement decision. William Lewis presented clarification over the reports and said, “Reporting around the role of The Washington Post owner and the decision not to publish a presidential endorsement has been inaccurate," reported Daily Beast.

He added, “As Publisher, I do not believe in presidential endorsements. We are an independent newspaper and should support our readers’ ability to make up their own minds.”