Future
The Next Chapter in the Amazon-Trump Reset
The tech company’s deal to release a film on Melania Trump has renewed scrutiny of Jeff Bezos’s efforts to get closer to the president-elect.
Jeff Bezos sees reason for optimism in a new Trump administration that extends to Amazon’s film production business.Credit…Jeenah Moon for The New York Times
A tale of two Bezos businesses
Jeff Bezos surprised many when he spoke of his hopes for President-elect Donald Trump’s return to power at the DealBook Summit last month. The duo’s reset took a new twist with Amazon’s announcement that it would release a documentary on Melania Trump shot by an outcast filmmaker, and more tumult at The Washington Post.
But Bezos, like other business leaders, has been moving closer to the president-elect, and the decisions are inevitably being analyzed in that context.
Amazon called it a “behind the scenes” look at Trump — but she will have a big say. The documentary will be released this year on its Prime Video service and in theaters; filming began after the election. Melania is an executive producer, suggesting that she will be able to shape the narrative.
The documentary was directed by Brett Ratner, who was accused of sexual misconduct. Ratner is the high-profile director and producer of films such as “Rush Hour” and “The Revenant.” But he disappeared from Hollywood after six women leveled accusations against him that Ratner denied. He has resurfaced after entering Trump’s orbit. It’s another example of Trump’s MAGA movement’s career-rehabilitating powers, Semafor’s Ben Smith writes — and how tech platforms are willing to reject “progressive judgments on people and content.”
The fallout from The Post’s refusal to endorse a presidential candidate is still playing out. Last week, Ann Telnaes, a Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist, quit after saying the paper killed a cartoon depicting Bezos and other tech C.E.O.s bending the knee to a statue of Trump. She called that decision a “game changer,” and “dangerous for a free press.” (The Post rejected Telnaes’s version of events, saying the cartoon was rejected for editorial reasons.)
More disruption could come soon. On Sunday, Oliver Darcy reported in his Status newsletter that The Post’s star political reporter Josh Dawsey was joining an exodus from the paper, and that layoffs were expected this week. The paper has already struggled to hire a new executive editor after a number of top candidates reportedly pulled out of the running.
