Paging George Orwell...

That’s it. I’m cancelling my Wapo subscription and buying the Gateway Pundit. It has more truth than a Epstein file.

What in the insane fuck

Great – what happens when another administration comes in down the road? People want solid objective reporting on events - not some wind sock rag owned by a malleable clown that changes with the political zeitgeist.

A memo written with the grace and subtlety of a prison camp loudspeaker commanding you to turn that frown upside down. RIP Washington Post

Ugh. That's actually the opposite of what we need for a better world www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archiv...

added alt-text, since I couldn't read it:

doubling down on free markets and personal liberties, adding a dose of unsentimental optimism the iceberg is getting closer

"Democracy dies in the gaslight."

Today is my first day! But I have “thinking” and “planning” for quite some time. That’s pretty ominous and sounds more like a takeover, as opposed to a genuine new hire.

Is it time to go from ignoring wapo to blocking wapo? 🤔

"communicate with optimism about the future"?!? Does this guy read the paper?

So I guess they're changing the slogan to, "Democracy thrives in darkness, just trust us"?

"Inner workings" does not take a hyphen

You ready for this @pbump.com ?

Advocating for free markets and personal liberties...of the billionaire class. Useless corporate rag. It's not a partisan project. Same old class warfare.

No wonder Dan Balz jumped

"we will welcome robust debate within these twin pillars" I'm guessing he used an AI that was trained on Chomsky's writings to create this letter.

Interpreted as: Forced Optimism = WaPo Dictation for Fascists. It's as if @washingtonpost.com knows there will be no further free/fair elections. Then, oligarch-owned outlet will be the Official State News. This won't end the way you planned. Bet you won't cover that either. #DoNotObeyInAdvance

The thing is, bonobo Bezos’s Washington Post, that with great power (that granted to the press by the First Amendment) comes great responsibility (reporting the truth and speaking it to power). If you can’t fulfill your responsibility, you don’t deserve the benefits. Shutter it and get fucked.

Good, another reason to keep not reading them.

Dude wrote down the concept of a plan so I guess that’s something.

So died The Washington Post and their real investigative journalism, the reporting of the news, regardless of who is in charge at the Oval Office. They have now turned into the print version of Fox News. So long WAPO, it was nice to have known you.

I only regret that I had but one cancellation to give this newspaper.

Didn’t Jeff and Lauren recently boast that they both read Bari everyday? Like, they’re suppppppperr proud of it, if I remember correctly. Oof.

The Washington post that yall remember in your minds eye no longer exists. Stop propping it up and go support with your $$ and attention journalists willing to hold truth to power and who don’t use their publication to sway govt policy for themselves and their personal finances.

“…we have a real opportunity to build the most popular, vibrant and influential opinion section in the country.” You sweet summer child…

🤮

"expecting high standards" standards aren't something you "expect". You "set" high standards, or "enforce" them; you "expect" that they *will be met*, etc. who copyedited this email.

Someone who doesn't know you don't need a hyphen in inner-workings. But I guess I'm lacking in optimism.

why can't any of these hacks write.

White meritocracy

"robust debate within the twin pillars" is the one that bothers me the most.

"It's also important that we communicate with optimism about this country in particular and the future in general" is pretty bad both in content and form.

if i were on that team i'd feel not 100% good with how he says he looks forward to meet others on the team, not the rest of the team. if it's accidental, it's awkward. but if it's intentional that's downright chilling.

ChatGPT

"we will welcome robust debate within the twin pillars" oh man you guys are gonna get so censored.

"pillars" are not usually something you are metaphorically "within"! the only instance I can think of is SAMSON IN CAPTIVITY, so, uh, noodle on that bad boy.

Let it grow, Samson, let it grow!

"within the twin pillars" jeez.

There are two opinions, right and insane. We will, in fairness, cover both.

for freaking real.

Specific very strong opinions are allowed and even encouraged

‘Robust debate within the twin pillars’ reads kind of like ‘complete freedom of movement throughout your gimp cage.’

Put some fucking alt text on it dude

Whelp, my subscription ends in a few weeks. I only use the WAPO to comment on their support of the fascist King Joffrey.

You're a bluesky elder with a blue check posting walls of text without ALT text. Please use alt text.

"Communicate with optimism about this country, and the future in general" sounds like marching orders from the Ministry of Truth.

I wish I could cancel my subscription again.

What, WaPo "gleichschaltung" isn't complete yet?

This is exactly why I am letting my paid subscription to WAPO lapse this month. Democracy Dies in Douche-baggery.

Wapo competing with nyt to be the "fox news" of print media

ATTENTION BAJORAN WORKERS: WE ARE ALL REPUBLICAN NOW WE ARE ALSO DISCONNECTED ENOUGH FROM REALITY TO IMAGINE “PROMOTING FREE MARKETS” IS NOT DEEPLY PARTISAN THAT IS ALL

"Within the twin pillars". You know, *those pillars*.

What's changed? Who decides the topics? Who approves the articles?

All these emails and memos when there are changes sound exactly the same no matter what the business is, The gist is there'll be tons of bad changes and cuts to staff/expenses etc.

So glad I unsubscribed — what a tragedy to see the WP reduced to this.

Tariffs are a restriction on free markets.

No, that's an illegible screenshot of what may or may not be the full memo, presented with no alt text so as to exclude people with visual impairments.

bsky.app/profile/mhai...

Thanks. But a professional journalist has no excuse for refusing to use an accessibility aid that is very well known and has been around since 1993. It shouldn't be up to other people to cover for his ableist choices.

Weird how advocating for personal liberties never means “habeus corpus” but instead, “don’t regulate/tax me (even if my entire business is a grift)”

Why do I feel like "embracing experimentation and innovation" means AI?

Let’s hope his editorials have more meat than this memo

Considering that they will only be allowed to communicate with optimism about the future and current administration, I hope not.

I think Adam should find the highest office window in the building and utilize it

Free markets and personal liberties. So he wants to fight against the Trump-GOP cult tooth and nails? /sarcasm

Nazi normalization and neoliberalism - 2 great tastes that let my subscription expire. The Post is toast, buh-bye.

Yikes!

Better in Original German: "Kraft durch Freude"

Tax billionaires out of existence.

'We want people who are genuinely enthusiastic' is foreshadowing

"...those who stick with us..." Good luck with that.

This is a “fuck Jeff Bezos and billionaires in general” thing, isn’t it?

I want to talk to one conservative that subscribes because of this effort. One.

The NYTimes will find a bunch of them for you in a diner in a small Midwestern town

LOL. Their “random voter” just happens to be Clay County chair of the Republican Party

Yes, the Rich Should Be Allowed to Hunt Poor Kids for Sport. By Moneybags Kidkiller the III

a typical example of middle corpo english dialect, can be condensed to “toe the new line or else”.

"Some of you won't like it, so you can fuck off"

This is off topic but ultra-wide screenshots like this are not particularly accessible to anyone who's not reading this on a laptop ...

Wonder how many cancellations there will be before he's out?

No doubt they’ll start out with a full-throated attack on what is by far the largest government intervention in the free market: The joint stock corporation and its associated legal structures.

I'm reading a book about McKinsey and I guarantee you every point in this memo came from a 2,500-page slide deck from some consulting firm paid millions to "make WaPo more efficient and profitable".

Basically, bend over. Going to exercise my personal liberty by not reading the @washingtonpost.com because of this superficial, disingenuous nonsense.

There’s some hefty double speak going on here. Orwell could have written it.

You need alt text here.

Still proud I made a decision some time back to cancel my sub

@washingtonpost.com average paid daily circulation has dropped below 100,000 for first time in 55 years. put that in perspective: 97,000 is figure you’d expect from mid-size regional paper like The Minnesota Star Tribune . Not from a globally recognized newsroom with multiple Pulitzers to its name.

I used to be a subscriber. Never again.

btw, last time I checked, the Philadelphia Inquirer had over 20,000 more subscribers than that. www.amediaoperator.com/analysis/phi...

Subtract me from the @washingtonpost.com number and Count me in on that @inquirer.com number —

dude writes like shit

It's Springtime for Hitler, you guys!

Wow. Thankful I don't work at the @washingtonpost.com and feel sorry for those who do. They are signaling to everyone that all opinion pieces in the future will little more than right wing partisans. No wonder their subscription rate is plummeting.

The first political cartoon:

"Advocating for personal liberties and free markets", which is propaganda-speak for "extremely partisan angle to move money and power to the already wealthy" in the same paragraph and "but this is not a partisan effort". Please don't let this guy buy CondeNast...

If you voluntarily subscribe to the Washington Post you are a fascist collaborator

Jeff Bezos will never be able to wipe the remnants of Orange cheetos from his mouth, tongue, lips and hands.

The washington post lost all credibility when it's owner stopped them from writing a piece supporting Kamala for the presidency. Why would I ever trust anything you say again?

Journalists love the salutation "Team."

Also, the usage blight that is "iconic."

they should give kid rock a column… because no respectable, or self respecting subject matter expert is going to hitch their wagon to that titanic

What a POS

Somehow this memo doesn't exactly inspire "genuine enthusiasm"

Thrilled I'm not underwriting this with subscription $ anymore.

"Get on board or get out" isn't not what I want to see as a subscriber. I always thought opinion pages were for opinions from all sides.

'We won't let sentimentality slow down much-needed reform.' No more yearning for the bygone days of intellectual independence & all those journalism awards before jeffy the thumbhead turned the wapo into a broligarch admiration society rag.

This is dog shit but you work for the NY Times so there's no heroes here

Was this guy the only one willing to take the job? Because this memo seems designed to drive away both subscribers and top-notch journalists.

so it’s gonna be nonstop “opinion” pieces like this..

Adam O'Neal:

The Paper of Wreckord

Can I write an editorial where working to shove Trump and MAGA into the dustbin of history make me optimistic about this country and the future?

That's a lot of words when all he had to do was just send them the picture

"advocating for free markets and personal liberties..." 😑

Truth dies by editorial decree

Under Russian communism, the government owned the means of production. Under American "free-market capitalism," the means of production owns the government.

So we can expect to see loud denunciations of Trump's tariffs, the rapidly emerging police state, the active destruction of women's, LGBTQ and minority POC rights ... yeah, I'm not holding my breath either.

"We will accept robust debate, so long as you're being enthusiastic about the direction of the country. We should think to ourselves...does this new dystopian government policy make us Great, Greater, or The Greatest. "

The journalistic version of “you’d be prettier if you smiled more.”

Got it, the policy of the newly appointed WP opinion editor is to no longer support speaking truth to power. Rather, the WP opinion page will promote unfettered, regulation free capitalism and a white washing of American history and behavior. Any staff not on board shd quit. Look out Murdoch/WSJ.

Hmmm, so where is says “important to communicate with optimism about the future of our country “… sounds like pro-trump propaganda is the foundation of the WaPo op/ed. Glad my subscription is over an done with. Not going back.

So, advocating for free markets and personal liberties will not be "a partisan project"? Yeah, right. Also sound like they'll be looking for folks to indicate 100% loyalty to WaPo's rightward shift. I predict nothing good to come of this, and I remain happy that I am no longer a subscriber.

🪿 Which personal liberties, Adam?

Well you also have to be optimistic about the country and the future… I’m guessing hopes for a revolution against the new king isn’t the kind of optimism they’re looking for.

The problem news media aren't willing to see is the change in media consumption. A respected journalist or opinion writer could submit a resignation tomorrow and start a substack the next day. In 2-3 months, they could start a podcast with sponsors. Yes, it would be hard, but not impossible.

📌

Washington Post will rebrand and rename itself the Washington Examiner

For personal liberties but only for American citizens is not a thing. Kinda hard to see the positive slant on Alligator Alcatrazes popping up in southern red states but I'm Mullin will find it.

Clown show.

The requested alt text

For some reason I don’t think the rampant abduction of thousands of people or armed horseback stunts in public parks by masked law enforcement thugs won’t be part of their uphold personal liberties agenda

Pure douchespeak.

@alt-text.bsky.social

Really gonna hammer that “free markets and personal liberties” nail all the way into the ground

they mention in the letter “rebuilding trust” … but when Bezos pulled the Harris endorsement that led to 300k subs canceling , then 75k more when he fired the last opinion editor in February Somehow I don’t think they are fixing the problem of “bowing to bezos whims” www.npr.org/2025/02/28/n...

It’s that bra I tell you. It makes ole Bezos stupid! E’s a thinkin about dos titties instead of journalism!

DOA

Conspicuously absent is any discussion about “the truth.”

📌

I really thought this was rolling downhill to a “everyone will have to reapply for their jobs” conclusion. I guess it kinda did.

📌

Prediction: this will not end well for anyone.

Why does this remind me of the time when Umbridge turned up at that school of magic the TERF Queen wrote a series of books about?🤔

Once again, so glad I dumped @washingtonpost.com last year. I don't need fucking American Nazi propaganda puff pieces polluting my mind.

I literally grew up with WaPo and it kills me to see how the paper is betraying its true ideals. 😑

Yikes. Does he edit better than he writes?

Dude, I can’t read that even in my glasses

You can offer any opinions you want as long as they remain between the two pillars which are: A: Love for oligarchy B: Oppression is freedom! Opinions must be positive. Example: “The only thing more freeing than oppression is the love we have for our billionaire masters! #EatTheRich

Is anyone else getting "Season 5 of The Wire" vibes from this nonsense? I think it was the word 'collegial' that did it.

Alt text, please?

I’m on it.

I predict "personal liberties" will have nothing to do with the thousands of people being abducted off the streets and out of courthouses by unidentified goons.

No, that would be silly. It simply refers to the ability to spend your billions as you wish.

Please include alt text.

Democracy dies in darkness, and he’s here to make sure we keep the searchlights pointed firmly in one direction.

It's like I always say, if you're going to post an image that's barely legible, you should also not use alt text.

Report and opine on American fascism with optimism!

Bezos is a monopolist who has used Amazon.com to destroy retail competition. His @washingtonpost.com cannot and will not be a credible advocate for "free markets." And Bezos has donated to and supported the autocrat in the White House, too. So much for "personal liberties."

Personal liberties, so lots of pro-LGBT editorials, excellent.

Signed, Conductor, Orchestra, RMS Titanic.

That’s actually slander on the band of the Titanic, who played until the very end to try to calm the frightened passengers knowing they themselves had no way to escape.

The Post was THE paper just a few years ago. Sad.

Oh boy. I’m guessing they’re not prioritizing ALL individual liberties, just those of straight, white, republican men.

Sounds like getting invited to a meeting with the Bobs.

"We welcome robust debate between the twin pillars: my left nut and my right nut"

As someone who was born and raised in the DMV, the Washington Post was one of the main reliable sources of news over my lifetime. I’m heartbroken what Bezos has done to destroy its credibility. I cancelled my subscription when it expired last year, along with Prime & Amazon.

With the missing alt text that I bet a lot of people can use

Thanks and for me it cuts off the alt text at “in addition” - guess there’s a max char?

Yep let's try the bot, it chops things up. 👍

That worked. Thanks for catching it! 😃

And here’s the original post without the ALT text: bsky.app/profile/benm...

can I ask what the purpose of this is, since it was posted originally without alt text?

Check the bot output in this thread for the missing end.

@alt-text.bsky.social

Alt text retrieved

What purpose does alt-text serve for an image of text?

Oh, are you demonstrating how it works? Was confused. 😄

Indeed

💜 gracias!

Also this is the cat whose notification went off

?

People who cannot see the image can read a description (if it's a visual picture) or the words contained within the image.

For example, blind people using screen readers.

Surprise, Surprise, an oligarch ruins another valuable institution. FU Bozos.

So, by free markets and individual liberties, we'll be seeing a lot of editorials critical of tariffs, rounding up immigrants, threatening universities over "DEI" or demanding they include Commissars to watch each class for thought crime, opposing book bans in schools and libraries, and so on?

Their paper is almost as shitty as the one you work for

He has no idea who his customer base represents. I seriously doubt the Post will make it to a 150 years.

Oh, look. A dog whistle, followed by a threat.

“Inner workings” doesn’t get a hyphen 😑

Since you did not add it: @alt-text.bsky.social

WaPo is dead.

In addition to being Orwellian, this is just poor writing. How is this person in journalism? Do they not know how compound sentences work?

Typical corporate mumbo jumbo.

They're really doing the "strength through joy!" bullshit the Nazis did. Huh.

Screw the Bezos-owned corporate entity which calls itself The Washington Post. Unsubscribed 3.5 years ago. My only regret is that I can’t unsubscribe more often.

Afterall how bad will the Country get without Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, science, vaccines, and alliances with other Countries? IOW, you need to cover #MAGA racists that are willing to die a 9th Century death just so they see fewer people with melanin in their skin; like it is wise choice

"much needed reform" = ehhh more fascist

Finally, someone willing to stand up for free markets lmao

A race to the journalistic bottom, no doubt.

"It's also important that we communicate with optimism about this country in particular and the future in general" = even the appearance of dissent is out the window. good thing they lost all their readers already

Arbeit Macht Frei

"It's not partisan" and "you've gotta be optimistic about the country" stuck together like that is so funny. Jeff wants to be the new pet billionaire.

For me, this is the most critical part of that statement. Basically, do not say anything bad about Trump's plans or politics. It is not the job of reporters to be "optimistic", it's to be honest and transparent.

Yep. I think the part about sitting in on meetings as an observer—presumably to figure out who was not just “reconciled” but also “enthusiastic “ about this “new direction”—was also pretty ominous. Sounds like the paper will go downhill even more. And it sounds like a terrible office atmosphere.

The camp directors, local government officials, and other decision-makers were "optimistic" that Camp Mystic would not get overrun by flooding. I prefer "prepare for the worst, hope for the best," when lives are on the line. You can't be prepared if you don't do a realistic, honest assessment.

How can anyone make an informed decision about politics if they are not aware of the stakes involved?

Oligarchs, like Jeff Bezos, don’t want an informed public .

This is the part that to me is the most ominous. Our opinions about what’s happening in this country must be unrelentingly positive or else.

Straight from "advocating for free markets and personal liberties will be critical" to "this is not a partisan project." So Libertarians are non-partisan now?

Libertarians really tend to just advocate for property rights, regardless of what BS they claim. They certainly aren't advocating for the personal liberties of immigrants.

I wish I could cancel my subscription again

Same.

I like how he’s enjoyed meeting only some of the people so far.

I had to look this fellow up. This bodes very ill and it may be time to let go of the few bylines I care about there.

The gaslighting is strong in this note. So glad I canceled my subscription and will never spend another penny on this bullshit rag.

Ahh, so Democracy Dies within the Twin Pillars. And with optimism...

Personal liberties to do what?

Me: Uh, maybe control one's own body? O'Neal: Not like that!

Noting he said “personal” instead of “civil.” Sounds more like “let me do whatever I want with my money” and less like habeus corpus, probable cause and all that good ignored stuff in the constitution

📌

Did he send it under the subject line "Fork in the Road"? If they're serious about supporting "free markets and personal liberties," then the editorial page should be *filled* with pieces that are harshly critical of the current administration. Anything less, and you'll know their shtick is BS.

Dear Adam: Fuck you!

With alt text.

You can debate things in a non-partisan way as long as it conforms to our partisan ideological framework.

There is now no chance they can win me back. Bezos ruined a 150yo institution.

Anyone else think the writing sounds like ChatGPT 🤔

The memo profoundly dismisses the former good work of the people at WaPo. And sounds like a threat, do as I say or else. Tr*mpism at WaPo. Sad and dismaying development.

now with alt text (spread over two images) bc i couldn't read that even with my reading glasses

It's so funny that the Post's "we are moving right" slogan is "free markets and personal liberties" when if they actually wanted to stand up for those things they'd have to be far more oppositional to Trump than they are, what with the tariffs and concentration camps and all

The "personal liberties" in question just involve not saying things about evil deeds.

One more reason to abolish billionaires: They take anything that is good and ruin it.

New op-ed mission: happy clappy about fascism

In short, “I’m here to put the last nail in the coffin of truth.”

"Democracy dies in darkness and we are now officially a black hole"

"Democracy dies in darkness and I'm here to turn off the lights." Alternative take.

Advocating for free markets and personal liberties for the benefit of the very wealthiest in America while everyone else is left holding the bag and the nation robbed and corrupted by the same.

This paper is dead. It’s time to let it fade into irrelevance

I would like to never hear the LinkedIn cliché "beyond thrilled" again

How to say much without saying anything. If I’m on staff, I’d be asking, “What the fuck does any of this mean”?

the beatings will continue until morale improves

It means “You are now expected to enthusiastically cheer for fascism.”

It translated pretty clearly to me as “get on board with my agenda enthusiastically or get out”. Unsubscribed.

Tellingly, it sounds like AI slop.

"Free markets and personal liberties" is a MAGA catchphrase. It translates to Privatize everything and encourage hate speech.

And Trump, of courses, supports neither of those things, but nevermind

Everything going on is step by step to sell off and privatize everything they can. Trump's a huge fan of hate speech he can profit off of. Stephan Miller is quoting White Supremacy conspiracy theories from the White House.

"hey guys! we're turning the opinion section into the propaganda section! Get right with that or get a new job!" - Adam O'Neal

...turning?

"officially codifying"

"re-titling"

An Executive Order, if you will

"It's also important that we communicate with optimism about this country in particular and the future in general. As such, your manditory Happy Helmets™️ have been ordered and are on their way."

FFS. If you're going to screenshot something is it really that much of a time suck to copy/paste ALT text?

This sounds Orwellian: "Advocating for free markets and personal liberties will be critical as we rebuild trust with America." Also: "The changes we have planned are not marginal". "We"? And how do you change an op-ed page, besides picking new people? It does sound like a plan to dictate topics.

So, the FIRST Op-Ed will be about how stupid Tariffs are, right? And then about the Press being blackmailed and bullied by the Government to pay Trump and NEVER say anything negative about him?

"It's also important that we communicate with optimism about this country in particular and the future in general." Pro-establishment propaganda confirmed.

Translation: Push for corporate capitalism, unfettered by pesky regulations. Trust us to know what is best.

These moves are corporate bullshit.

📌

One does not write editorials at the WSJ if one does not embrace fascism with an open throat.

Attention WaPo columnists: We will now advocate for "personal liberties", which do not include the liberty to write the op-ed you would like to write.

An Editorial board that cared about free markets and individual liberty would be screaming bloody murder at virtually everything that Trump is doing.

B-b-bingo.

"The beatings will continue until morale improves".

Also make sure you're optimistic about the country and future

Trump: "What you're seeing and reading is not happening, except when we want you to believe it is happening, like with the rioting in LA at the moment that requires me to be spending millions on deploying National Guard and Marine assets there for the foreseeable future."

Yes! Even more Orwellian.

We are currently entering “Roller Ball” territory.

Just getting out ahead of the Schriftleitergesetz

Yep…

📌

The Germans are so helpful in packaging these complicated concepts into single words. arolsen-archives.org/en/news/nazi...

Putin is issuing similar certificates for press onto occupied by him/KGB/Russian Mafia territories. Everyone knows "Russian roulette" made by Simon Ostrovsky in 2014-2015 www.youtube.com/watch?v=tQGR...

📌

If only they packaged the concepts into less complicated words. (or less complicated for non-Germans). Schadenfreude is one worth committing to memory.

Schriftleitergesetz just means means "editor's law", but it seems long because "editor" itself is a package-word: Schriftleiter is "writing director". So the one big concept word is assembled from 3 parts: "writing director's law".

And outlawing abortion and contraception.

Def not advocating the personal liberties of immigrants as the gov't snatches them off the street and stuffs them into concentration camps. smh

yup bsky.app/profile/equa...

That first part is a) what stuck with me, and b) why I cancelled my subscription last year.

"Personal liberties" i.e. opinion articles about how we must defend the personal liberty of some chud to say all marginalized groups should be exterminated but also trans people should never have the personal liberty to change their own body.

But no worries, it's just an opinion article, it can't actually affect public opinion! (/s)

Challenge: someone submit a column arguing that the Administration and Republicans across the country are at war with the "personal liberty" of trans people and see if it's ever published.