Washington Post opinion editor O'Neal resigns after a year

Adam O'Neal, the editor hired by Jeff Bezos to overhaul The Washington Post's opinion section, is stepping down after roughly one year, the paper announced internally on Friday, July 31. His last day will be August 31.

O'Neal informed staff of his decision in a memo, framing it as a personal choice and expressing pride in the changes implemented during his tenure. He wrote that the section had embraced a mission of championing free markets and personal liberties while working to become more financially sustainable. Acting publisher and CEO Jeff D'Onofrio, in a separate memo, credited O'Neal with making the opinion section more balanced, sustainable, and accessible.

O'Neal was appointed in July 2025 following the resignation of his predecessor, David Shipley. Shipley left after Bezos, the paper's billionaire owner, announced a strategic shift for the opinion pages toward promoting free-market principles and personal liberty, a move that included plans to hire new conservative writers. O'Neal, previously a correspondent for The Economist and an editorial page writer for The Wall Street Journal, was tasked with executing this vision.

His brief tenure was marked by significant...