'Won't tip the scale, diminishes credibility of media', Jeff Bezos on Washington Post not endorsing a presidential candidate
Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has defended the decision of The Washington Post, owned by him, not to endorse any presidential candidates in the upcoming US Presidential elections. According to Bezos, who is also the third-richest person in the world, a newspaper endorsing a candidate won¡¯t tip the scales of an election.
'Voters are affected by a newspaper's endorsement'
"Presidential endorsements do nothing to tip the scales of an election. No undecided voters in Pennsylvania are going to say, ¡®I¡¯m going with Newspaper A¡¯s endorsement.¡¯ None. What presidential endorsements actually do is create a perception of bias," Bezos wrote in an article in The Washington Post.
'Not the first time'
According to him, the media is facing a fall in credibility, and endorsing a presidential candidate will only create a perception of non-independence.
"Ending them is a principled decision, and it¡¯s the right one. Eugene Meyer, publisher of The Washington Post from 1933 to 1946, thought the same, and he was right. By itself, declining to endorse presidential candidates is not enough to move us very far up the trust scale, but it¡¯s a meaningful step in the right direction," Bezos added.
He also stated that The Washington Post's decision not to endorse any candidates was taken internally and that there was no quid pro quo of any kind.
Washington Post is not alone
It should be noted that The Washington Post is not the only major US media network that has decided not to endorse a candidate in this election. USA Today and The Los Angeles Times have also decided not to endorse any candidates.
The only major notable endorsement by a media house for a candidate is from the Rupert Murdoch-owned New York Post, which has endorsed Donald Trump.
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