The decision by The Washington Post to shutter its sports section has been to the benefit of The New York Times.
Six former writers for The Washington Post — Barry Svrluga, Spencer Nusbaum, Candace Buckner, Ava Wallace, Adam Kilgore and Jason Murray — are joining The Athletic, the publication’s owner The New York Times announced Thursday.
The announcement was reported shortly beforehand by Kerry Flynn of Axios.
Svrluga, who had been with the Post for more than 20 years, will primarily cover the Commanders. Nusbaum will primarily cover the Nationals. Buckner will work as a national columnist, Murray as Deputy Editorial Director, Kilgore as a member of a new investigative unit, and Wallace as a tennis writer and women’s sports contributor.
The Post essentially wiped out its sports department earlier this month as part of a massive wave of layoffs, opting to move away from the beat and local coverage that rarely generates national attention, but forms the backbone of sports reporting. The Post has said it will continue to cover sports as a ‘cultural phenomenon.’
Despite being laid off, some Post staffers — including Svrluga — still opted to cover the Winter Olympics for the publication on-site from Italy.
It should be noted that The New York Times itself shut down its own sports department in 2023. But the Times merely shifted its sports coverage to The Athletic, which it had purchased the prior year. The Post has no sports vertical of its own, meaning that it has functionally ceased to be a player in sports media.
The Times is not the only publication capitalizing on the Post decision. The Baltimore Banner recently announced that it plans to begin expanding its sports coverage to include the Washington D.C. market, and was recently reported to have purchased new domain names referencing a potential “D.C.” version of the nonprofit paper.
