THE Washington Post began widespread lay-offs on Wednesday that will drastically shrink the size of the storied newspaper, affecting all departments.

Executive Editor Matt Murray informed the staff of the cuts, which will cut across the international, editing, metro, and sports desks, and come just days after the more than 145-year-old newspaper scaled back its coverage of the 2026 Winter Olympics amid mounting financial losses.

“For too long, we have operated with a structure that’s too rooted in the days when we were a quasi-monopoly local newspaper,” Murray said as he added that “we need a new way forward and a sounder foundation.”

One Post reporter, speaking on condition of anonymity, called it a “bloodbath.”

“The Washington Post is taking a number of difficult but decisive actions today for our future, in what amounts to a significant restructuring across the company,” the media house said in a statement.

“These steps are designed to strengthen our footing and sharpen our focus on delivering the distinctive journalism that sets The Post apart and, most importantly, engages our customers.”

News outlets have struggled for years to maintain a sustainable business model after the Internet upended the economics of journalism.

“All departments are impacted. Politics and government will remain our largest desk and will remain central to our engagement and subscriber growth,” Murray said a call. “We will be closing the sports department in its current form.”

The Washington Post last year made changes across several business functions and announced job cuts, saying then that the reductions would not impact its newsroom.

The newspaper, owned by Amazon.com founder Jeff Bezos, had offered voluntary separation packages to employees across all functions in 2023 amid losses of $100 million.

“If Jeff Bezos is no longer willing to invest in the mission that has defined this paper for generations and serve the millions who depend on Post journalism, then The Post deserves a steward that will,” the
Washington Post Guild said on X.

The Post’s White House staff said in a letter to Bezos last week that their most impactful coverage depends heavily on collaboration with teams at risk of job cuts and that a diversified newsroom is essential when the paper faces financial challenges.