HuffPost’s Editor-in-Chief Danielle Belton has stepped down from her position following a wave of layoffs at the left-leaning news site. The parent company, Buzzfeed, announced a 22% reduction in HuffPost’s newsroom, resulting in 30 job cuts. Belton made the difficult decision to resign, stating that she could not ask others to make sacrifices without doing the same herself.
In her memo to staffers, Belton expressed her sensitivity and emotional nature, which influenced her decision to leave the company. Executive editors Kate Palmer and Whitney Snyder will now lead the newsroom as the company navigates its next steps in filling the editor-in-chief role.
The layoffs at HuffPost have raised concerns about the parent company’s motives, with some speculating that Buzzfeed CEO Jonah Peretti may be “bowing to MAGA” ahead of Donald Trump’s return to office. National editor George Zornick voiced his frustration on social media, questioning the scale of the layoffs in relation to HuffPost’s financial standing.
Senior reporter Alexander Kaufman echoed Zornick’s sentiments, highlighting the achievements of the newsroom under Zornick’s leadership and questioning the long-term impact of dismantling the team. The decision to downsize the newsroom has sparked a debate about the company’s commitment to journalistic integrity and business goals.
Further scrutiny arose from a Semafor article revealing that Vivek Ramaswamy, a minority stakeholder in HuffPost’s parent company, had been advocating for cost cuts. Ramaswamy’s ties to Trump and his proposed role in leading a new Department of Government Efficiency with Elon Musk have raised concerns about potential political influence on the left-leaning news site.
As the fallout from the layoffs continues to unfold, HuffPost faces a period of transition and uncertainty. The departure of Belton and the broader restructuring of the newsroom have left staff and readers alike questioning the future direction of the publication. Buzzfeed’s response to the backlash and allegations of political interference will likely shape the narrative surrounding HuffPost in the coming weeks.
