The resurrection of the Washington Post

Ever since Amazon founder Jeff Bezos bought it in 2013, the Washington Post has revived itself quietly both editorially and financially.

When the Washington Post announced that it had had a profitable last year, it also said that this was not through cost cutting. In fact, it had hired hundreds of editors and reporters and more than tripled its technology staff.

Mention of the third cost category seems appropriate as it is the digital platform that has pushed The Post to where it is today. Digital ad revenue crossed the $100 million mark. Last month, it had 78.7 million unique users and 811 million digital page views trailing only CNN and The New York Times among news organisations.

Editorially, the newspaper’s recent scoops have been the talk of the country and the world - the latest of them being the sensational revelation that President “Trump revealed highly classified information to Russian diplomats in their Oval office meeting” the week before last.

A string of investigative news stories brought back memories of Watergate and the Nixon years – the years of glory for The Post. Such stories also drove advertising for the newspaper. “Other brands want to attach themselves to a trusted brand,” said the Post’s chief revenue officer Jed Hartman. Good journalism can also be profitable.

Source : https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/19/business/washington-post-digital-news.html?ref=business&_r=1