Fearing major layoffs, current and former Posties rally around #SaveThePost campaign

The Washington Post newsroom, whose journalists have continued to deliver essential reporting in an unrelenting news cycle (not to mention one reporter being subject to an FBI raid), is expecting deep layoffs to hit in early February. The layoffs would follow mass staff departures from the newspaper amid internal and external blowback to editorial decisions under billionaire owner Jeff Bezos.

The Guardian and Status both reported that more than 100 newsroom layoffs are expected — which would represent more than 10% of the newsroom — and that the metro, sports, and foreign desks are likely to be hit hard. Across the company, the layoffs could hit as many as 300 Post employees, according to Oliver Darcy at Status, which would make the cuts “among the most devastating in the storied newspaper’s history.” But “no one really knows how widespread the cuts will be,” The Guardian’s Jeremy Barr cautioned, “or in fact if they will happen at all.” A Washington Post spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Galvanized by the rumors of impending layoffs, current and former staffers have rallied around a social media campaign targeting Bezos, #SaveThePost, across multiple social media platforms including X and Bluesky. Status reported that the social media campaign was a strategy “hatched Sunday night [that] quickly gained momentum on Monday as staffers communicated about it via Slack.”

The posts reflect a raw outpouring of grief and desperation among journalists witnessing a venerable institution brought to its knees. Many celebrate the sections expected to be hardest-hit by the rumored layoffs. Here’s a roundup of some of them:

Designing sports has been the highlight of my time at The Washington Post and I would be devastated if I was no longer able to do that. It was my dream to work here and I’ve been lucky to do that for the past 9 years.

I felt inspired to share some of my fav pages #SaveThePost pic.twitter.com/ziB17h5xcA

— Brianna Schroer (@briannaschroer) January 26, 2026

Hi @JeffBezos. We will never forget your support for our essential work documenting the war in Ukraine, which still rages. Your wife has called our team “badass beacons of hope.” We risk our lives for the stories our readers demand. Please believe in us and #SaveThePost. pic.twitter.com/LH8lyGiU6M

— Siobhán O’Grady (@siobhan_ogrady) January 26, 2026

Today a source warned me that my reporting lines could have me killed. Just an average day as a foreign correspondent. I can’t count the number of times I’ve come under fire or had windows rattle from blasts. Our international staff risk so much to bring home news. #SaveThePost pic.twitter.com/FvnLEhEoiQ

— Loveday Morris (@LovedayM) January 26, 2026

As international correspondents and reporters for the @washingtonpost, we risk our safety to investigate authoritarian governments, report from gang-controlled towns and document evidence of stolen elections. This on-the-ground reporting is more critical than ever. #SaveThePost pic.twitter.com/fWiDwBuhF6

— Samantha Schmidt (@schmidtsam7) January 26, 2026

I’ve driven into hurricanes, trekked through jungles and camped on an ice sheet in sub-zero temperatures to bring you news about climate change.

If you value this work, and everything else you read in @washingtonpost, help us send a message to @JeffBezos: #SavethePost pic.twitter.com/FL0FLm7vwO

— Sarah Kaplan (@sarahkaplan48) January 26, 2026

I spent 24 years at The Washington Post, much of it on the international staff. Correspondents provide readers with vital information on wars, terror attacks, drug trafficking, natural disasters, pandemics. Please @JeffBezos #SaveThePost pic.twitter.com/FY7G8yGq5d

— Mary Beth Sheridan (@marybsheridan) January 26, 2026

@JeffBezos, sharing these thoughts. Please let us continue our work. #SaveThePost pic.twitter.com/L8CBhG3ptD

— Chico Harlan (@chicoharlan) January 27, 2026

I’m incredibly saddened about what is happening at the Washington Post. Going back to my time at the Baltimore Sun, I’ve admired and envied the Post’s writers, and not just in sports. Jeff Bezos’ destruction of a great newspaper will be part of his legacy. #SaveThePost

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 27, 2026

.@JeffBezos I cover international security for @washingtonpost and reported on ISIS, Jamal Khashoggi’s murder, al-Qaeda, Iran and Israel. I’ve been imprisoned, lived under threats, and escaped kidnappings to do this work. #Journalism matters to America and the world. #SaveThePost pic.twitter.com/mDxmM4qX9g

— Souad Mekhennet (@smekhennet) January 26, 2026

The Post’s Local section is facing an existential threat.

Their work has changed laws and exposed corruption. It has drawn and kept our subscribers. It is central to how I cover Trump and his power.

Keep The Washington Post a place that covers Washington. #SaveThePost https://t.co/ZUQGg1Izr7

— Emily Davies (@ELaserDavies) January 27, 2026

In just three months we went from covering Gaza to the pagers attack to a full blown war in Lebanon to the collapse of Assad regime to Christmas protests in Damascus.

It was exhausting, but I’d do it all over again because it’s the job. #SaveThePost pic.twitter.com/RbsO7hWwQ6

— Mohamad El Chamaa (@MohamdEch) January 27, 2026

Emerging from mat leave to say that serving as a foreign correspondent for the @washingtonpost was the honor of a lifetime.

Our reporters worldwide put their lives on the line to dig up what would otherwise stay buried.

It’s not a product. It’s a public service. #SaveThePost

— Danielle Paquette (@DPAQreport) January 26, 2026

#SaveThePost, @JeffBezos. pic.twitter.com/yQHuFxZH1z

— Washington Post Guild (@PostGuild) January 27, 2026

Dear Jeff Bezos,
Please don’t gut the Washington Post. You‘ve got the money and the country needs the news. Don‘t bend a knee to this White House. Be a hero for honest, hard-nosed reporting. You can do it! And you should! Counting on you. #SaveThePost

— Tom Ashbrook (@TomAshbrook) January 26, 2026

The @washingtonpost is one of the few remaining American newspapers with a robust foreign reporting staff. Eliminating it to save money would come at the cost of an informed citizenry, something that has never been more important. @JeffBezos #SaveThePost

— David J. Lynch (@davidjlynch) January 26, 2026

I was @washingtonpost Baghdad buro chief at the height of bloodletting in the US invasion. Believe me, it’s bad for everyone – government, military, business and ordinary people – when there’s not strong ground reporting on how US policy is playing out overseas. #savethepost pic.twitter.com/dSlYnfrD3B

— Ellen Knickmeyer (@EllenKnickmeyer) January 26, 2026

I love The Washington Post, not just b/c it is my hometown paper or that my dad learned English by reading it or that it sparked my love of the news. I love it b/c everyday it produces exceptional journalism. I hope its leadership will reconsider these cuts. #SavethePost https://t.co/RGVkdldv6i

— Nancy Youssef, نانسي يوسف (@nancyayoussef) January 26, 2026

Proud to work with the @washingtonpost.com’s fearless international reporters. They’re the heart of this newsroom, and we’d understand our world less without them. #SaveThePost

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— Drew Harwell (@drewharwell.com) January 26, 2026 at 11:45 AM

Had the great privilege of working at @washingtonpost for 20 years. It isn’t just a newspaper but an indispensable part of America. Its journalists are brave & brilliant, among the best in the world. No paper ever got better by shrinking its ambitions. @JeffBezos #SaveThePost

— Peter Baker (@peterbakernyt) January 27, 2026

As @washingtonpost.com international & local correspondents, we have risked our lives, side by side, because we believe reporting from the ground serves the public good. To choke that engine of brave, committed colleagues would be devastating. If you value our work, tell Jeff Bezos to #SaveThePost.

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— Louisa Loveluck (@leloveluck.bsky.social) January 26, 2026 at 1:38 PM