Washington Post layoffs: Newspaper says one‑third of its workforce is being cut

WASHINGTON - The Washington Post says one‑third of its workforce across all departments will be cut.

What we know:

The financially struggling paper began rolling out major cutbacks Wednesday, including eliminating its sports department and reducing the number of journalists it stations overseas

Executive editor Matt Murray announced the changes during a Zoom meeting with staff.

Newsroom employees were told to expect emails with one of two subject lines indicating whether their positions were being eliminated.

Murray did not provide a total number of layoffs, and the Post declined to say how many employees it currently has, according to the Associated Press.

He told staff the books department will close, the Washington‑area news and editing teams will be restructured, and the Post Reports podcast will be suspended.

The Washington Post headquarters in Washington, DC, US, on Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2026. (Photographer: Kent Nishimura/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

Murray acknowledged the cuts would be shocking but said the goal is to rebuild the Post into an organization that can grow again.

The moves had been anticipated for weeks after word leaked that sports staffers assigned to cover the Winter Olympics in Italy were told they would no longer be going. 

The Post later reversed course and said a smaller team would attend.

What's next:

In recent weeks, many Post employees have appealed directly to owner Jeff Bezos as the paper has lost subscribers, in part due to decisions attributed to him, including pulling back from an endorsement of Democratic nominee Kamala Harris in 2024 and steering opinion pages in a more conservative direction.

The Washington Post Guild urged the public to pressure Bezos, saying, "Enough is enough. Without the staff of The Washington Post, there is no Washington Post."