How Two Media Outlets Ignited a Self-Inflicted Crisis

Several U.S. based media publications decided not to endorse in the 2024 presidential election.

The Los Angeles Times, the Washington Post and USA Today, all noted they were not endorsing in the critically important presidential election. In the case of the Los Angeles Times and the Washington Post, the papers’ owners (Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong and Jeff Bezos) reportedly blocked the editorials, even though they were already written.

For background, editorials represent the views of the publisher and the editorial board. Elected officials, political campaigns, donors, and others closely follow the editorial pages of major media outlets.

Editorials often follow news coverage. If an issue has been heavily covered in the news, the editorial board may weigh in and offer its opinion. Issues of national or state importance may also be highlighted on the editorial pages. Advocacy organizations and grassroots leaders often request editorial board meetings with the goal of securing an editorial on a major issue.

Why This Matters

The media is a defender of democracy. They are supposed to be a guardrail against autocracy. The question becomes what are the implications of the publications capitulating in the final hour?

Moreover, the editorial department is independent of the news department. It is designed to offer unvarnished guidance without fear of retribution, or control, from anyone, including its owner.

Departure from History

Endorsing in political elections – especially presidential races – is commonplace. For instance, the Los Angeles Times had endorsed presidential candidates each cycle since 2004. The Post’s presidential endorsements date back to 1988.

USA Today has been making presidential endorsements since 1982. For their part, The New York Times noted that they will no longer endorse in state political races, but it did endorse Kamala Harris for President.

Readers Are Angry

Opting not to endorse has left many readers and newspaper employees angry. Some subscribers have threatened to cancel their digital subscriptions. At a time when newspaper circulation is down, every subscriber counts.

People are angry; not just because this is a departure from precedent, but because the stakes in this election are unbelievably high. Former President Trump’s rhethoric, as well as that of some of his campaign surrogates, is frightening.

For instance, Trump was quoted as saying he might have to call in the national guard or military to deal the enemy from within. Can American people who disagree with him be considered enemies? What might happen to them if that is the case? If so, how do we preserve freedom of speech, not to mention an independent media?

This is a Crisis

By all accounts, the decision not to endorse so close to an election has resulted in a public relations crisis. To be clear, a crisis is anything that takes you off mission and off purpose. The Washington Post reportedly lost 2.5 percent (which amounts to 200,000 subscribers) as of Monday afternoon – Oct. 28.

“The Post’s publisher, Will Lewis, framed the decision as a return to the paper’s roots as an independent voice — though the editorial board says it had drafted an endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris that was allegedly blocked by owner Jeff Bezos (a claim Lewis denies).”

L.A. Times owner Patrick Soon-Shiong defended the decision and said he was respecting a decision made by his paper’s editorial board.

Several board members openly disputed his characterization, asserting they had prepared an endorsement for Harris which Soon-Shiong ultimately blocked. The L.A. Times’ editorials editor, Mariel Garza, resigned in protest. Multiple other staffers also submitted resignations. 

Bad Timing

The Washington Post decision on endorsement came less than two weeks before the election, and the L.A. Times, less than a month prior to the election. This was far too late in the election cycle to issue such a critical decision.

The decision not to endorse in the presidential election, after the endorsements were written, was a slap in the face of editorial board members, newsroom staff, and readers. This decision will also breed distrust.

The question becomes, can news outlets owned by billionaires truly operate independently? For democracy’s sake, I hope not.

If you’re facing a public relations crisis, you don’t have to navigate it alone. Visit our website and schedule a consultation. 

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Jennifer R. Farmer is the principal of Spotlight PR LLC. For more tips, check out our other blogs. We also invite you to subscribe to our newsletter for regular updates.