To Barry Diller, Amazon Founder Jeff Bezos told CNBC’s Squawk Box on Monday that The Washington Post’s decision not to endorse a candidate in tomorrow’s presidential election was “absolutely principled” and ill-timed .
“They made a mistake – this should have happened months ago and it didn’t, and that’s the problem,” Diller said.
Diller is the chairman of two online travel companies Expedia.com and international aviation committeeowns media platforms and websites such as Dotdash Meredith and Care.com. He and Bezos appear to have been close friends for years, with Diller and his wife, fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg, hosting an engagement for Bezos’ fiancée Lauren Sanchez party.
According to a person familiar with the matter, Bezos, the newspaper owner, decided directly not to support presidential candidates in the 2024 election or future presidential elections. article Published by two reporters from The Washington Post.
The move prompted public condemnation from several staff writers and at least a large number of 250,000 Digital subscriptions were canceled and at least three editorial board members resigned.
Bezos defended his position in his column late last month, calling the move a “meaningful step in the right direction” to restore low public trust in the media and journalism.
“The president’s endorsement has no impact whatsoever on the size of the election,” Bezos wrote, stressing that the decision not to endorse a candidate was made “entirely internally” without consulting either campaign. “I wish we could have made changes earlier, in a moment further away from the election and the sentiment around it.”
Diller said he spoke with Bezos after the decision was made.
“I think it’s absolutely principled,” Diller said. “The mistake they made – and he admitted it – was timing.”
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