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Comment by mc32 | Hacker News Reader

Maybe he’ll take a cue from Bill Gates and get involved in philanthropy. Alternatively he might get more involved in Blue Origin?

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I think he's probably bored at this point. Whats there really left to do at Amazon? AWS and the website are eating the world. He's 57. Why not at this point go play with his rockets and spend time inside that WaPo newsroom that he loves.

> spend time inside that WaPo newsroom that he loves.

Investing in journalism is actually a very good thing.

Definitely. So many tax loopholes to exploit.

Ah, yes. Because owning a news organization, one filled with people who can do investigations, presents numerous opportunities to avoid paying taxes.

Especially if you can change the narrative from "evil capitalist who forces his workers to piss in buckets" to "pioneer O'Reilly tube colonist"

Americans adopt that narrative voluntarily when it comes to entrepreneurs, he doesn't need to interfere with the Wapo newsroom for that. (and to my knowledge hasn't).

WaPo has publicized quite a few articles critical of Jeff Bezos and Amazon, even after WaPo was acquired. So this is something that seems to be just another baseless "jeff bad" take.

The questions shouldn't focus on what he lets get printed - we still live in an age where journalism seems to have minimal consequences no matter the quality - but what happens if e.g. the WaPo Guild takes action in solidarity with an Amazon union.

> The questions shouldn't focus on what he lets get printed

Bezos has no say in what can and can't be published.

There is a difference between "does not have editorial oversight" - which I believe - and "has no say in what can be published" - which is trivially false since as owner he could do anything from hire only sports reporters to shut the whole thing down if he wanted.

>but what happens if e.g. the WaPo Guild takes action in solidarity with an Amazon union?

Luckily, we don't need to wonder, because WaPo has actually posted that kind of an article just yesterday, and it was extremely critical of Amazon's anti-unionization efforts [0]. The article's headline is "Amazon’s anti-union blitz stalks Alabama warehouse workers everywhere, even the bathroom". Even the headline itself wasn't sugarcoated or softened in the slightest.

0. https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2021/02/02/amazon-...

This is not an especially a sympathetic article to either side, but I'm talking about things beyond the core remit of a newsroom. If Amazon workers strike, what happens if the WaPo Guild refuses to cross the picket line by accepting Amazon deliveries, using AWS, or run articles alongside Amazon ads?

As long as it's unconditional investing…

I have no problem with conditional investing. If I owned a media company, I would like to be involved.

He's one of the richest men in the world... and single.

We're about to witness one of the most glorious midlife crises in history.

I think having one in Musk is enough (though Musk is married now). Don’t need planet of the billionaire bachelors in the midst of their midlife crises.

As chairman and being involved in the WaPo newsroom and possibly K street would actually help Amazon. But you'd probably have to enjoy politics and does Bezos? Bezos built Amazon so is he OK with it being chopped up if it comes to that or not?

His ex gave away 4.2 billion last December FWIW.

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/30/style/mackenzie-scott-pri...

Hopefully, the former.

> Hopefully, the former

Either one is a win for humanity.

So now ONE person dictates what is a win for humanity?

https://www.bezosdayonefund.org/

Hopefully the latter. We've got an excess of billionaires trying to mould society with their vast sums of wealth.

Blue Origin would be a great use of his time. Massive long-term benefit to humanity, few implications on global governance or the lives of most individuals.

Or his own private charter city, so people have to consent to live in his world.

Or he could blow it all on yachts, hookers and blow.

I don't understand why space rockets and lunar lander is important except if they help us clean our planet. It's a long bet on a long time horizon. But maybe it's a good way to spend government money.

Imo, it's a good way to keep people who're functionally minor deities in terms of absolute power busy and somewhat productive for a long time.

Maybe there's a little PR FOMO? The former Mrs. Bezos is making a name for herself as a very generous philanthropist [0].

[0]https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/20/business/mackenzie-scott-...

Hopefully, the latter

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