It was 2016, and Donald Trump had just become the presumptive Republican nominee for president.

And the owner of one of America's biggest newspapers was explaining to the world why he bought that newspaper in the first place.

I've always believed, and I think a lot of, I know it's not a rare belief.

I think a lot of us believe this, that democracy dies in darkness, that certain institutions

have a very important role in making sure that there is light.

And I think the Washington Post has a seat, an important seat to do that because we happen

to be located here in the capital city of the United States of America.

Democracy dies in darkness.

Those words officially became the Washington Post's slogan in 2017.

There was little ambiguity about its meaning. The Post saw itself as a force that would

hold truth to power and shine a light on corruption in Washington, where a notoriously corrupt

billionaire had just entered office. By 2019, the Post was running an ad during the Super Bowl,

claiming that the nation was threatened and that journalism would

help keep us free.

That is what democracy dies in darkness was supposed to mean.

Now today, that is still technically the paper slogan, but there is a whole lot more ambiguity.

This week, executives at the Washington Post, again owned by Jeff Bezos,

announced that the paper was releasing a new mission statement to guide its

journalism. And that mission statement, riveting storytelling for all of

America. Rividing storytelling for all of America. Here's how the New York Times

describes the Post's new mission.

Mr. Bezos has expressed hopes that the Post would be read by more blue-collar Americans

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