Washington Post Reportedly Not Covering Winter Olympics In Person, As Layoffs Loom
Decision comes as newspaper faces financial struggles and potential layoffs, according to internal communications
The 2026 Winter Olympics start in just a few weeks in the Milan region of Italy, with high expectations for the US Olympic team. And the Washington Post apparently won't be there to cover it.
In yet another sign of how mightily the Post is struggling to retain relevance and revenue, a new report says they won't be sending a single reporter to Milan for the games. Max Tani posted on X about an "internal email" sent to Washington Post sports staff that informed employees they would not be sending anyone to Milan.
Then Ben Mullin posted the memo, from Managing Editor Kimi Yoshino: "As we assess our priorities for 2026, we have decided not to send a contingent to the Winter Olympics. We realize this decision and its timing will be disappointing to many of you, so please reach out to me if you want to talk further."
That is not a good sign, is it?
POMPEII, ITALY - DECEMBER 22: Hong Kong actor and stuntman Jackie Chan holds the torch of the Milan Cortina 2026 Winter Olympicsâ flame inside the Archaelogical site of Pompeii, near Naples, Italy, on December 22, 2025. (Photo by Iso Ekle/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Washington Post Ignoring Winter Olympics Coverage A Sign Of Times
The Post has faced massive financial struggles in recent years, as the paper's far-left political orientation has alienated independent or moderate readers. That's had significant implications across the news side of the business, but it's clearly impacting sports coverage now too.
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The Olympics are a huge story, and the US team is once again expected to compete for the top overall country in medal count. Why would the Washington Post, one of the country's largest newspapers not be there?
Tani's original post about upcoming layoffs probably has something to do with it.
How many layoffs? Who knows. How many more big sports stories will they not cover? It's a sad truth that the Post has become a pale imitation of what it used to be.