According to this, WaPo has lost over 200,000 subscribers!

[50 Shades Of Blue]

Link to tweet

David Folkenflik
@davidfolkenflik
NEWS: More than 200,000 subscribers have canceled their digital subscriptions to the Washington Post after the revelation that owner Jeff Bezos blocked an endorsement of VP Harris.
That's about 8 percent of WaPo's subscriber base - a staggering sum
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From npr.org
3:30 PM · Oct 28, 2024
·
407.2K
Views

[samsingh]

1. i'm also cutting back on my amazon spend where i can - so are my friends.

i will always look for another avenue to buy an item and only use Amazon as a last resort.

[jayschool2013]

12. Wonderful!

That's the next logical step.

[MissouriDem47]

31. Amazon Prime Free Trial Subscription was just canceled over the weekend.

[NonPC]

37. Amazon Is a Last Resort

We look other places first. Then if I need to order from Bezos, we group our items so they barely go over $35 for free shipping.

I guess when Mackenzie divorsed Bezos, she took both his balls.

[Mary Mac]

38. Just use it as search engine. No more Whole Foods

Last edited Fri Nov 8, 2024, 09:09 AM - Edit history (1)

I can't give up Whole Foods

[Dock_Yard]

2. Keep 'em coming. I was a canceler, as were many here.

[Danmel]

3. I canceled-if i had Amazon prime, I'd cancel

And I'll skip my 3 yearly visits to whole foods.

[bucolic_frolic]

4. That's just the money. They harmed their brand too. They did an Eloon!!

Great minds think alike. Like Trump. Like Eloon. Like Bezos. Peas in a pod.

[Blue Owl]

5. Good -- FUCK 'EM

[orthoclad]

6. Do more good to cancel Amazon

Am gutted US towns and cities by killing neighborhood stores. I've boycotted them for ~20 years. Hateful biz.

[allegorical oracle]

13. Yeah, Bezos will just fire newspaper staff when circulation drops -- or could sell the paper to

some version of a Murdoch.

[orthoclad]

20. I can imagine Sinclair buying it.

[hatrack]

45. He already did - the managing editor worked for Murdoch for nearly 20 years . . .

Re. Will Lewis:

EDIT

A very different picture of Lewis emerges from material presented in London courtrooms in recent months and reviewed by NPR. The man picked to lead the Post — a paper with the slogan "Democracy Dies in Darkness" — stands accused of helping to lead a massive cover-up of criminal activity when he was acting outside public view.

In lawsuits against News Corp.'s British newspapers, lawyers for Prince Harry and movie star Hugh Grant depict Lewis as a leader of a frenzied conspiracy to kneecap public officials hostile to a multibillion-dollar business deal and to delete millions of potentially damning emails. In addition, they allege, Lewis sought to shield the CEO of News Corp.'s British arm, News UK, from scrutiny and to conceal the extent of wrongdoing at News of the World's more profitable sister tabloid, The Sun. In sum, the Duke of Sussex and Grant argue that Lewis was a linchpin of efforts to limit the fallout during a key period between late 2010 and 2012.

For years, people working on behalf of British tabloids routinely broke privacy laws by breaking into homes, tapping phones, hacking into voicemails and emails, and taking photographs and videos in private homes and businesses — all to sell papers. Politicians, celebrities, professional athletes, royals and actors were all seen by the press and much of the public as fair game for rough treatment. That changed in 2011 when The Guardian revealed that News of the World had hacked into the voicemails of a missing 13-year-old schoolgirl who had been murdered. A flood of investigations and lawsuits ensued, expanding to much of the press.

On Friday, a British judge ruled that Prince Harry was the victim of phone hackingby Mirror Group Newspapers, a rival media outfit. The judge awarded him nearly $180,000 in damages. (Damages in British civil cases are typically more modest than those in the United States.) As a publisher, News UK is in an undesirable category of its own, having paid approximately $1.5 billion in associated judgments, settlements, legal fees and related costs in the years since 2011 — more than 10 times how much the Mirror Group has reported paying. It's also more than the record $787 million the Murdochs' Fox Corp. paid to settle a landmark defamation suit against Fox News over lies it broadcast about fraud in the 2020 U.S. elections.

EDIT

https://www.npr.org/2023/12/20/1219570870/washington-post-will-lewis-tabloid-hacking-prince-harry

[LisaM]

19. Yes. They have ruined Seattle.

Prior to Amazon, Seattle had a thriving downtown, with two (formerly three) department stores, a flagship Eddie Bauer, a hopping music and theatre scene, free buses downtown, local clothing stores, and a number of bookstores (some local, like Elliott Bay and Beks, some national, like Borders, Brentanos, and Barnes and Noble). That has virtually vanished. It's depressing and frightening at the same time. How can we go back? The people moving here don't want to leave their apartments to work, shop, eat, or play. They shut themselves off with headphones. Theatre audiences and even concert audiences are aging. You can hardly find a meal in a restaurant after 8:00 p.m.

It's dreadful and getting worse.

[orthoclad]

24. I was trying to think of where to go see a movie. Nothing.

Like The Matrix, we're becoming little batteries for the gig economy, in little asocial worlds.

[LisaM]

35. I haven't seen The Matrix, but that seems apt.

There is one movie theatre downtown (I think) and one at Northgate, plus a few scattered theatres. I really miss the Landmark chain, which also showed really good movies, just before every movie was super hero, dystopian horror, or high tech.

But we do live in small, anti-social circles, and people support the gig economy far more than they should. I can't talk my friends out of using Airbnb. They like that it's good for them, don't care that it's horrible for cities and the housing market.

[orthoclad]

43. Humans live in life support pods and dream virtual reality

The AI running things taps them for energy. I actually saw that in a real theater. That's the rate of change.

There was a small boutique theater here that I loved, but it's gone.

I also miss neighborhood papers. They're gone. Everybody has to sell their soul to Zuckerthing now.

edit: I use "asocial": it's not that we're opposed to a social life, we sub virtual life for it.

[LisaM]

44. Oh, right! The North Seattle Press.

Mostly supported by want ads, which were a fun read on their own.

[orthoclad]

7. Rolling Stone: Amazon alternatives

https://www.rollingstone.com/product-recommendations/lifestyle/best-amazon-alternatives-1136987/

Thrive Market
Hive
Grove Collaborative
Public Goods
World Market
Chewy
Uncommon Goods
Etsy
Temu
Instacart
Target

Fuck Bezos with his own dick-rocket.

(Someone told me that blocking scripts defeats some paywalls.)

[50 Shades Of Blue]

8. Thanks!

[Dem4life1234]

15. Damn Temu too? These guys own so much stuff!

These damn monopolies.


Oops, read it wrong, sorry, those are alternatives not what Bozos owns.

[orthoclad]

25. Temu's a little iffy,

cheap stuff that breaks, made in China.

[notroot]

23. I use Amazon Prime almost exclusively for buying books. (I buy a lot of books.)

Sadly Rolling Stone didn't offer an alternative there.

Looking at Powell's Books as a possible substitute.

[Lulu KC]

29. So do I and I like ThriftBooks A LOT!

I usually buy used if I can, and the prices and everything else are every bit as good as Amazon. Really good service, and you earn points for a free book. If something's not quite right, instant refund, no questions asked, and big apology.

They also have a number of new books.

[notroot]

49. Yeah I do buy a lot of new books. It's the most direct way to support an author I love.

I do love me some used books! I buy them when I can, but I read a lot of series fantasy authors who are still publishing and I want to support them.

I found this article with some alternatives, and #1 was my first instinct... Powell's Books out of Portland.

https://www.makeuseof.com/tag/amazon-alternatives-buying-books/

Also mentioned Barnes & Noble, Books-a-Million (BAM!) and other choices.

TL;DR: I have lots of options besides Amazon Prime.

[drray23]

36. triftbooks. abebooks are places I order from often. You can find good used copies of almost every book.nt.

[orthoclad]

40. I've used Alibris for books.

[orthoclad]

46. There's also Project Gutenberg

for decades they've been posting out-of-copyright literature on gutenberg.org. Huge collection. Lots of SF stories.

[notroot]

48. Yeah that don't do it for me. I like books. Physical hard copies.

I also wanna read what I wanna read, and I don't wanna read out-of-copyright literature most of the time.

[orthoclad]

50. Part of the pleasure of reading is holding the book and turning the pages

I've tried subbing an ipad for a book. It works, but I didn't stick with it. But stored lit is great for dr offices etc because nobody subscribes to Nat Geo or anything else worth reading anymore. No mags, lots of tvs, which I find annoying. I pull out the ipod, play music to drown out tv, and read short stories.

I've downloaded some classics for reference, like The Odyssey. But what I mainly like is all the Golden Age SF, complete with original artwork. There's a surprising amount of classic, hard to find short stories available. Lately I've been reading Ambrose Bierce in offices.

PG offers several formats.

[Lulu KC]

30. For supplements and a lot of health and household items

I also like Vitacost. They are owned by Dillon's Groceries. They pack with paper, no plastic. The prices are good. There are minimum orders for free shipping, but there is always something on sale that we will need eventually, and with a little planning it works out fine. Sometimes they're a few cents more than Amazon, but it's worth it!

[orthoclad]

41. They have the hot corn chips I like, hard to find.

[emulatorloo]

51. Vitacost is favorite of mine too n/t

[Island Blue]

52. Temu?

Yeah, no.

[orthoclad]

53. Cheap, but many shoddy goods

and I wonder about the spyware factor.

That said, there are some useful things there.

[Lulu KC]

9. 8% is nice

Let's get it to at least the double digits.

[Lulu KC]

10. I'd like a number on Amazon Prime cancellations

That was one satisfying button to push on Friday.

[ecstatic]

18. hmm... do they immediately cancel with a prorated refund

or does it last until the next payment is due?

[Dave says]

26. Wash Post is to next payment date. I have a yearly subscription so not actually cancelled for about 6 months

I don't know about Amazon Prime.

[Lulu KC]

32. Yes, with WaPo

that gives me time to plan for life after Carolyn Hax. I really wish she'd make a statement. I know she'd like to.

[Lulu KC]

28. It lasts until the next payment is due

This gives me a few weeks to get organized to get out of it with that damn subscribe and save thing. And figure out some other things that they created to make themselves feel so indispensable. Man, they are manipulative. Psy ops.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

11. Yeah

[Dem4life1234]

14. That's what's up

And I never had Amazon prime, don't plan to either.

[Bird Lady]

16. I cancelled my amazon account

They don't have anything I can't get elsewhere, except for my audible. I will miss it but am sure I can find a replacement. I refuse to use any musk, fox and now Bezos products.

[pspro]

39. a few audible alternatives

There are a few lists like these online if you want even more options. There are a surprising number of alternatives to Audible. Here's a list with some to start: https://audiobookaddicts.com/best-alternatives-audible/

[Bird Lady]

47. Thanks

I think I found one audiobooks.com
I hope it works, I can't see well enough to read comfortably any more and I miss books.
I used to read about one a week and I miss the comfort it used to provide.

[Tree Lady]

56. I get audible books from the library free

Easy to get a lot that way with libby app.

[orthoclad]

42. If you mean audiobooks, public libraries are good.

I like to support libraries: paper books and movies.

And Project Gutenberg for anything out of copyright.

[ecstatic]

17. wow! great job, guys!

We have to do more of this.

[Mosby]

21. That's great?

Let's take down the LA Times next.

[Joinfortmill]

22. Damn, that's great!

[SayItLoud]

27. Need more to cancel. I did. NT

[Jarqui]

33. I'm one of the 200,000 ...

I only went back to help me do research for election rebuttals
But since Elon Musk seems to have a little 'trick' to limit who gets to read your tweets, it is a waste anyway.

[pagarr1957]

34. I ditched The Post a few months back...

...when they hired Will Lewis. That was enough for me! I know lots of others did then, as well. So I wonder what the TOTAL number of cancellations have been because of Lewis and now, the non-endorsement 'quid pro quo'?

And I'm also now working toward ditching Amazon. I have a fair about of "credit" there earned from previous purchases which I'll use, but am already finding alternatives for purchasing various items. My goal is to eventually cancel the account.

In the past, I've had second thoughts about Amazon but always decided "I like the service that they provide, and though Bezos has too damned much money, at least he's harmless." That is NO LONGER the case!

[Baggies]

54. Billionaires do what they want

He had to know he would lose subscribers and that calculation was worth the risk.

[tavernier]

55. I'm a new Target customer now.

Hopefully less knock offs than Amazon!