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Veteran British media executive Sir Will Lewis has been named the new editor and chief executive of The Washington Post as Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ newspaper group looks to revive its fortunes.
Lewis, 54, has held several high-profile jobs in the media industry, including editor of the Daily Telegraph, editor of the Rupert Murdoch-owned Wall Street Journal and CEO of Dow Jones.
Most recently, he co-founded the News Movement, an organization that aims to provide reliable information on platforms with large young audiences such as TikTok and YouTube.
The former Financial Times journalist was also in the running to buy the Daily Telegraph, which was put up for sale last month. In September, Lewis told Bloomberg that he was preparing to finance a bid for the newspaper. He plans to withdraw from the bidding process, a person familiar with the situation said.
Lewis will begin his new role at The Washington Post on Jan. 2, succeeding interim CEO Patty Stonesifer. The US broadsheet has been looking for a new permanent leader since the departure this summer of Fred Ryan, who had been managing director and publisher for nearly a decade.
In a statement, Bezos said Lewis was “an exceptional, tenacious industry executive whose background in passionate, award-winning journalism makes him the right leader at the right time.”
Lewis said: “Leading this bold media brand means further expanding my commitment to promoting quality journalism and upholding our democratic values.”
By joining The Washington Post, Lewis joins the ranks of British executives at the helm of leading US media organizations. Earlier this year, former BBC director-general Mark Thompson became managing director of cable news channel CNN, while Emma Tucker was appointed editor-in-chief of the Wall Street Journal in December last year.
After a surge in subscriptions during Donald Trump’s presidency, The Washington Post has seen a recent decline in growth. Last month, Amazon board member Stonesifer told employees that growth forecasts for advertising, web traffic and subscriptions were “overly optimistic” and announced plans to reduce headcount by about 10 percent through voluntary layoffs.
Lewis was knighted earlier this year for his “political and public services” as he served as an adviser to former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
During his time as editor, Lewis and the Telegraph won several awards for his investigation into expenses abuse by British MPs.
Shortly after Lewis became general manager of Murdoch’s British newspaper business in 2010, one of the company’s publications – the tabloid News of the World – was caught in an illegal phone-hacking scandal. Less than a year into his role, Lewis was placed on an independent committee within Murdoch’s media empire responsible for handling the company’s response.
Additional reporting by Daniel Thomas in London