Newly named Washington Post editor Robert Winnett has decided not to take the job and remain in England amid leadership turmoil at the news organization.
What You Need To Know
- The Washington Post says that Robert Winnett, who had been named to take over the organization's core newsroom functions later this year, will not take the job after all
- The newspaper has been in turmoil since publisher and CEO Will Lewis announced a reorganization plan that led to the executive editor, Sally Buzbee, quit rather than accept a demotion
- Since then, there have been several published stories questioning ethical choices made by Lewis and Winnett when they worked together in British media
- Lewis announced Winnett's decision in a memo to staff and said a search for a new editor will begin immediately
The Post's CEO and publisher, Will Lewis, announced Winnett's decision to withdraw in a note to staff on Friday morning. He will stay as deputy editor of the Telegraph in London.
Several published reports had raised questions about Winnett's involvement in articles where a source was paid and information gathered through deceptive means — practices more commonplace in England but frowned upon by journalists in the United States.
As part of a reorganization that has backfired, Lewis had named Winnett, a former colleague, to take over the Post's core newsroom functions after the November election. The Post's former executive editor, Sally Buzbee, had quit rather than accept a demotion.
The search for a new editor will begin immediately, Lewis told the staff.
