As President Donald J. Trump continues to use drastic measures to help save his presidency from Democratic challenger Joe Biden, a pro-Trump newspaper owned by Rupert Murdoch is changing its tone.
"Last month The New York Post called President Trump 'an invincible hero, who not only survived every dirty trick the Democrats threw at him, but the Chinese virus as well.' Then it published front-page articles trying to link the contents of a laptop said to belong to Hunter Biden to his father, Joseph R. Biden Jr.," The New York Times' Katie Robertson reported Friday. "On Thursday, in a sudden about-face, Rupert Murdoch’s scrappy tabloid published two articles with a wildly different tone. One accused the president of making an 'unfounded claim that political foes were trying to steal the election.' The headline on the other described Donald Trump Jr. as the 'panic-stricken' author of a 'clueless tweet.'"
Top editors at the tabloid reportedly told some staff members this week to be tougher in their coverage of him, said two Post employees who spoke with Robertson on the condition of anonymity.
Perhaps one of the largest shake-ups heading to the Post is the impending departure of Australian tabloid head honcho Col Allan, who once donned a Make America Great Again ball cap in the Post newsroom. Allan made a career at the Murdoch's newspapers in both Sydney and New York over the past 40 years. He was the Post's editor-in-chief from 2001-2016 and rejoined the paper as an adviser in January 2019, just as the Trump presidential campaign was underway.
“The Post has largely supported Trump because the paper shares his vision for free markets and the opportunity they provide to raise up all people,” Allan said. “We have also been critical of the president, particularly his tweeting. My personal view is that history will be very kind to Donald Trump.”
Allan said, “The Post is not perfect. But it articulates a view that is not obedient to liberal orthodoxy. Therefore it is dangerous. I know where I would rather be," he said in an email interview with The New York Post announcing his planned retirement.
