Jeff Bezos sought to tamp down controversy over his ownership of the Washington Post on Monday, saying in a newspaper editorial that he had made a “principled decision” by refusing to endorse a candidate for US president.
He also denied the decision not to run an opinion piece endorsing Kamala Harris, which had been drafted by the Post’s editorial writers, was part of a “quid pro quo” between Blue Origin, his rocket company, and former president Donald Trump.
The Post last week reported that its editorial board had written an endorsement of Harris that was not published following a decision by Bezos, who has owned the paper for 11 years. It was the first time the Post had not made an endorsement since 1988.