Washington Post executive editor Marty Baron to retire at end of February

The Washington Post said on Tuesday executive editor Marty Baron will retire at the end of February, after eight years with the newspaper.

In a statement, Jeff Bezos, the Amazon owner who bought the Post in 2013, said the paper’s recent success “simply would not and simply could not have happened” without Baron at the helm.

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“You led with integrity – always,” Bezos said, “even when it was exhausting, which it often was. You are both swashbuckling and careful. You are disciplined and empathetic.”

Quoting Baron, he added: “It’s really important to listen to the voices of people who have been marginalised and whose voices haven’t been heard. They may have something very powerful to say.”

Bezos said: “Yep. You will be missed so much. Not just your intellect but also – and most hard to replace – your heart. Congratulations on your well-deserved retirement!”

Baron came to the Post after editing the Miami Herald and the Boston Globe. In 2015 he was portrayed on screen by the actor Liev Schrieber, in Spotlight, an Oscar-winning film based on the Globe’s reporting of a child abuse scandal in the Catholic church.