Ex-Washington Post Columnist Slams Paper for “Trying to Ingratiate” with Trump
Former Washington Post columnist Jennifer Rubin joined MSNBC on Saturday, lambasting her former employer and accusing it of trying to ingratiate itself with President Donald Trump. Rubin, who quit the paper earlier this year, said that the Post’s editorial board refused to endorse Trump during the 2016 election, which was the editorial position of other major papers as well.
Rubin accused the Post of trying to appease Trump by avoiding controversy and refusing to speak out against his administration. She cited the paper’s refusal to endorse Vice President Kamala Harris in the 2024 election as an example of this self-censorship. Rubin also accused the Post’s billionaire owner, Jeff Bezos, of prioritizing his business interests over the paper’s obligation to serve the public.
Rubin pointed out that she was not alone in her departure from the Post, citing several high-profile staff members who have also left the paper for other outlets. She also mentioned a recent interview with former New York Times columnist Paul Krugman, who claimed that he was being muzzled at the Times and told to write less and be more heavily edited.
Rubin said that she and others who have left the Post have formed a new media outlet that is “overtly pro-democracy.” She claimed that the Washington Post has “failed spectacularly” at a moment when the country needs a robust and aggressive free press. Rubin also accused corporate and billionaire owners of major media outlets of betraying their audiences’ loyalty and sabotaging journalism’s mission to defend democracy.