Washington Post’s Baron: ‘You have to be willing to sacrifice traffic in favor of accuracy’

Chris Frates profiles Washington Post Executive Editor Marty Baron, whom he describes as “a kind of D.C. antimatter” and “stubbornly retro.”

“You have to be willing to sacrifice traffic in favor of accuracy. So, yeah, it’s tough,” he said. “Readers think these days that all information is available instantaneously, and the truth is that not all information is available instantaneously. You actually need some time to check things out. They expect that you’re going to have it right away, but they’ll hold you accountable if you get it wrong.”

Some might call those principles old-fashioned as well. And if Marty Baron’s plan to keep The Post upright simply comes down to sticking close to an analog ethos in a digital age, he has to hope that his readers share those values. In these tough and uncertain times for journalism, integrity can feel like just another experimental business model.