Washington Post publisher looks to lure right-leaning journos as ex-politics reporter joins MSNBC: report

The Washington Post publisher met for coffee last month with a prominent right-leaning journalist to discuss ways to lure more conservative reporters and editors to the predominantly left-leaning outlet, according to a report.

Will Lewis, who was tapped to lead the Washington Post by multi-billionaire Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, sat down for an off-the-record meeting with Free Beacon editor-in-chief Eliana Johnson, according to Oliver Darcy’s Status newsletter.

It is unclear what came of the meeting, according to Status. The Post has sought comment from Lewis.

“I don’t comment on private meetings or conversations, not that they’re a matter of deep interest to many people,” Johnson told The Post.

News of the meeting coincided with MSNBC’s announcement that Jackie Alemany, who covered politics at the Washington Post, was coming onboard as co-host of one of its “The Weekend” panel shows.

Alemany will co-host the show alongside another Washington Post personality, Jonathan Capehart, and Eugene Daniels, the White House correspondent for Politico.

“Jackie has built a reputation of accountability journalism covering the nation’s capital from both sides of Pennsylvania Avenue,” Rebecca Kutler, MSNBC’s president, said in a statement.

“Her addition as a co-host of ‘The Weekend’ in the mornings, alongside Eugene Daniels and Jonathan Capehart, solidifies this trio as a trusted roundtable of experts and insiders our audience is looking forward to waking up with every Saturday and Sunday.”

Alemany is the latest Washington Post journalist to leave the paper in the wake of management’s overhaul of its editorial and opinions pages.

Since the start of the year, several WaPo staffers have departed, including Ben Terris, Leigh Ann Caldwell, Tony Romm, Isaac Stanley-Becker and Cristiano Lima-Strong, according to Status.

Staffers who spoke to Status describe a newsroom that has been beset by low morale in the wake of leadership’s decisions.

“I’ve worked in messy newsrooms and even when I fled those, I still thought I could confidently tell someone why they should or should not work there, depending on their career goals and values,” one former Washington Post employee told Status.

“I can make no such case about The Post anymore.”

Bezos, who purchased the Washington Post from the Graham family in 2013 for $250 million in cash, announced last week that the newspaper’s opinions section would be devoted to advocating for “personal liberties” and “free markets.”

David Shipley, the newspaper’s opinion editor, resigned. It was reported that more than 75,000 readers canceled their subscriptions in protest.

Weeks before the Nov. 5 election, Bezos blocked the editorial board from endorsing the Democratic nominee, former Vice President Kamala Harris — a move that prompted tens of thousands of readers to cancel their subscriptions.

Bezos’ decision to hire Lewis as publisher was also met with consternation from newsroom employees.

Upon taking over as publisher in June last year, Lewis named Murray as executive editor, replacing Sally Buzbee.

The New York Post has sought comment from the Washington Post.