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The CEO of The Washington Post has stepped down days after the media company cut roughly 30% of its staff.<\/span><\/p>\n The Post announced publisher Will Lewis\u2019 departure on Saturday. Lewis also wrote a short note to staff in which he explained that he was leaving \u201cto ensure\u201d a \u201csustainable future\u201d for the media outlet.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cAfter two years of transformation at The Washington Post, now is the right time for me to step aside,\u201d Lewis wrote, according to <\/span>CNN<\/span><\/a>. \u201cI want to thank Jeff Bezos for his support and leadership throughout my tenure as CEO and Publisher. The institution could not have a better owner.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cDuring my tenure, difficult decisions have been taken in order to ensure the sustainable future of The Post so it can for many years ahead publish high-quality nonpartisan news to millions of customers each day,\u201d he concluded.<\/span><\/p>\n Lewis joined The Washington Post in 2024, brought on board by Bezos to help turn the outlet around after years of shrinking readership and financial losses. Jeff D\u2019Onofrio, the Post\u2019s chief financial officer, will succeed Lewis in the interim.<\/span><\/p>\n Post owner Jeff Bezos also wrote a note included in the release announcing the change. The Amazon founder said that The Washington Post has \u201can essential journalistic mission and an extraordinary opportunity,\u201d according to <\/span>Business Insider<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEach and every day our readers give us a roadmap to success. The data tells us what is valuable and where to focus,\u201d Bezos said.<\/span><\/p>\n The Post made major changes this week to reverse its trajectory, cutting roughly 300 jobs as it seeks to strip away parts of the company that it sees as financial liabilities and focus resources on profitable areas. Executives at the company said that the outlet has failed to adapt to a changing media landscape and must make tough decisions to stay relevant and competitive.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIf we are to thrive, not just endure, we must reinvent our journalism and our business model with renewed ambition,\u201d executive editor Matt Murray wrote in a note to staff on Wednesday amid the layoffs.<\/span><\/p>\n The major cuts came to the newsroom\u2019s international reporting and sports department, which no longer exists. Some of the sports writers were folded into the features section of the paper. The paper shrunk its international coverage, but will keep reporters on the ground in about a dozen countries.<\/span><\/p>\n The Post is also restructuring its metro section and shutting down its Post Reports podcast. The outlet will focus on national news, investigations, and health and wellness.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cToday is about positioning ourselves to become more essential to people\u2019s lives in what has become a more crowded, competitive, and complicated media landscape,\u201d Murray said during a call with staff on Wednesday. \u201cFor too long, we\u2019ve operated with a structure that\u2019s too rooted in the days when we were a quasi-monopoly local newspaper.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n