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Will Lewis has stepped down as publisher of The Washington Post, saying the timing was right after two years of what he described as organisational transformation at the newspaper.

In a note sent to employees on Saturday and later shared on social media, Lewis wrote that “after two years of transformation, now is the right time for me to step aside”. He said that during his tenure, “difficult decisions had to be taken in order to ensure the sustainable future of The Post so it can for many years ahead publish high-quality nonpartisan news to millions of customers each day”.

Lewis also thanked Post owner Jeff Bezos “for his support and leadership”.

In a separate statement, The Washington Post announced that Jeff D'Onofrio would take over as acting publisher with immediate effect. The statement did not mention Lewis. D’Onofrio has served as the paper’s chief financial officer since June 2025 and was previously chief executive officer of the social media platform Tumblr.

CBS News said it had reached out to the Post for comment.

Lewis had been publisher of the Post since November 2023. Before joining the newspaper, he served as publisher of The Wall Street Journal from 2014 to 2020.

The leadership change comes days after the Post announced significant layoffs. On Wednesday, executive editor Matt Murray informed staff of the job cuts during a Zoom call. Multiple media reports said Lewis faced criticism from employees for being absent from that call.

As part of the restructuring, the Post scaled back its foreign news coverage and shut down some sections of the paper, including sports. In a letter to the newsroom shared with CBS News, Murray said the changes were aimed at placing the newspaper “on a stronger footing” and better positioning it in a “rapidly changing era of new technologies and evolving user habits”.

A spokesperson for the Post confirmed that the cuts affected about one-third of the newsroom.

Former executive editor Martin Baron, who led the newsroom from 2013 to 2021, criticised the paper’s leadership in comments to CBS News earlier this week. He said some recent editorial decisions, including a controversial move not to endorse a presidential candidate ahead of the 2024 US election, had damaged the paper’s reputation.

Baron also blamed Bezos for, in his view, prioritising other businesses such as Amazon and Blue Origin over the Post.