Washington Post publisher William Lewis said Friday the newspaper will not endorse a presidential candidate in this year’s election or future elections, a stance that sparked outrage among some of its current and former employees as well as subscribers.

“The Washington Post will not endorse any presidential candidate in this election or in future presidential elections. We are returning to our roots of not supporting presidential candidates,” Lewis wrote in a note posted on the newspaper’s website.

The decision follows an attempt by Los Angeles Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong to block the newspaper’s endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris, which led to the resignation of editorial board editor Mariel Garza, followed by the resignation of two other members of the editorial board.

Both Soon-Shiong and Washington Post owner Jeff Bezos are billionaires who made their fortunes outside the media industry.

Former objects of the WaPo editor

Media observers criticized the decisions, while some newspaper readers said they would cancel their subscriptions.

“This is cowardice of which democracy is the victim,” Marty Baron, the former Washington Post editor who retired in 2021, wrote on X-Friday about the Washington Post decision. Former President Donald Trump “will see this as an invitation to further intimidate owner @jeffbezos (and others). Disturbing spinelessness in an institution known for its courage.”

The Washington Post Guild, which represents about 1,000 journalists and other employees of the media company, expressed concerns that management had interfered in the newspaper’s editorial decision-making process.

“According to our reporters and guild members, a recommendation for Harris has already been developed and the decision not to publish it was made by the Post’s owner, Jeff Bezos,” the task force said in a statement posted on X. “We already are.” “The decision impacts the work of our members at a time when we should be building, not losing, the trust of our readers.”

According to NPR’s David Folkenflik, Robert Kagan, a freelance editor at The Washington Post, has resigned from the newsroom over a decision not to support a candidate. “Kagan was a persistent conservative critic of Trump and associated him with an autocratic tradition,” Folkenflik wrote on X. “Average outraged reaction from staff.”

Some readers of both the Post and the Los Angeles Times said they planned to cancel their subscriptions, and some posted images of their subscription cancellation notices.

“Great, another billionaire protecting his own interests rather than those of the country. Nice to meet you, @washingtonpost. Subscription canceled,” wrote Hollywood director Paul Feig on X.

Zach Wahls, an Iowa state senator and a Democrat, wrote: “I am a strong advocate of paying for serious, quality journalism, which is exactly why I’m canceling my @washingtonpost subscription because of this timid, cowardly decision that couldn’t. “ come at a worse – or more revealing – time.”

The vast majority of reader reactions on social media were negative. Many said they had canceled their subscriptions, although some expressed support for The Washington Post. “For the first time in my adult life, I’m proud of The Washington Post,” wrote one reader.

Lewis did not immediately respond to a request for comment, nor did Terry Tang, executive editor of the Los Angeles Times. Matt Murray, executive director of The Washington Post, also did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Los Angeles Times Resignations

On Thursday, veteran Los Angeles Times journalists Robert Greene and Karin Klein announced their resignations, a day after editorial board editor Garza left in protest of Soon-Shiong’s decision not to endorse a candidate.

Greene, a Pulitzer Prize winner for editorial writing, said in a statement shared with the Columbia Journalism Review that he was “deeply disappointed” by the decision not to support Harris.

“I understand it is the owner’s decision,” he wrote. “But it hurt especially because one of the candidates, Donald Trump, has shown such hostility to principles that are central to journalism — respect for truth and reverence for democracy.”

Garza said the board had intended to support Harris and she drafted a proposed editorial, but it was blocked by Soon-Shiong.

An editorial board operates separately from the newsroom, and its writers’ job is to present an issue and then take sides and present arguments in its defense.

contributed to this report.