The Washington Post suffered the worst decline in print circulation among the top 25 newspapers in 2025 ahead of bloodbath layoffs earlier this year, as Jeff Bezos’ cancellation of a Kamala Harris endorsement outraged loyal readers, according to new data.
Average daily print circulation at the broadsheet tanked 21.2% in the six months through the end of September 2025 — down to 87,576 from 111,171 the previous year, according to a Press Gazette report citing data from the Alliance for Audited Media.
The Los Angeles Times, owned by billionaire Patrick Soon-Shiong, saw the second-largest drop in average print circulation, falling 19.8% to 63,492, according to the data.
It was another rough year for print papers across the industry, as the combined average daily print circulation of the top 25 largest newspapers fell 12.5% over the same period, and all but one of the top 25 saw declines.
But WaPo and the LA Times were hit especially hard following “significant subscription cancellations” after the papers’ editorial boards were blocked from printing endorsements of Harris ahead of the 2024 presidential election, the AAM told the Press Gazette.
Last month, the Washington Post axed a third of its newsroom — more than 300 journalists, including its entire sports desk — ignoring reporters’ impassioned pleas to Bezos.
The stunning layoffs were due, in part, to losses that soared past $100 million in 2025 as WaPo struggled to stay afloat amid steep declines in web traffic and changes in how consumers get their news, according to the Wall Street Journal.
Meanwhile, staffers are reportedly at a breaking point amid a growing distrust of Bezos after he announced a new vision for the WaPo’s opinion section emphasizing free markets and personal liberties in the wake of President Trump’s re-election.
The Wall Street Journal, which was the highest-circulated newspaper, saw its own print circulation fall 12.9% in the six months through September 2025 — down to 412,428 from 473,717, according to the AAM data.
Runner-up New York Times recorded an 8.6% drop in print circulation, while the New York Post in third place saw a 4.2% dip in the same period.
The Villages Daily Sun — a Florida-based daily ranked in the 25th spot — was the only paper to see a print circulation increase, up 4.2% to 48,716.
USA Today — previously known as Gannett — saw its local papers hammered, owning three of the 10 worst-performing newspapers, including USA Today, the Arizona Republic and the Milwaukee Journal.
