Washington Post CEO plans a mysterious ‘third newsroom.’ His past offers a clue.
William Lewis set out in 2020 to build a modern newsroom. His plan: Don’t resist the power of social media. Embrace it.
Whereas most publications try to draw readers to their own websites and apps, Lewis’s startup, the News Movement, creates content for TikTok, Instagram and YouTube—short, vertical videos on topics from politics to fashion to culture, aimed at a Gen Z audience. Lewis is now promising to carry out a digital transformation at the Washington Post, where he took over as CEO this year, with goals of reversing its contraction in online readership and stemming financial losses. He has said little about his plans, other than that he wants to create a new, specialized newsroom to do social-media and service journalism.
The News Movement offers some clues about how he views the modern media landscape, and in what direction he might take the Post. One goal of the Post’s “third newsroom"—the first is the core news operation and the second is the opinion section—would be to reach and generate revenue from audiences who are unlikely to pay for subscriptions but will engage with the news outlet’s content on social-media platforms, people familiar with the Post’s plans said. As Lewis tries to implement his plans, he faces deepening controversies that are creating a major distraction.
He’s dealing with questions about his role in a U.K. hacking scandal that played out more than a decade ago, his reported attempts to quash stories about that case, and the tactics he has employed as a journalist. The Post’s owner, Jeff Bezos, has reaffirmed his support for Lewis, according to people familiar with the matter.
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