The Washington Post Is Pivoting Its Events Strategy

The Washington Post is overhauling its events business, shifting away from a high-volume virtual strategy toward a model built around fewer, larger, and franchisable in-person experiences. 

The new approach, which began rolling out this year, aims to drive double-digit revenue growth within the standalone events business, while positioning live programming as a more central pillar of The Post’s overall advertising operation, according to Suzi Watford, chief strategy officer at The Post.

“We want to create really premium experiences that can drive both the mission of storytelling and the relationships we have with key clients,” Watford said. “The strategy is about bigger brand moments, bigger deals, and bigger ambitions.”

The pivot comes as The Post itself is attempting to reposition itself in the media ecosystem. Last year, the publisher reportedly lost around $100 million, a key factor motivating the changes. 

Under new chief executive Will Lewis, the publisher has adopted the mantra “Riveting storytelling for all of America,” emphasizing its newfound mission to cater to a wider audience. Watford, who was brought aboard last May to reimagine the events strategy, joined the organization from Dow Jones, where she helped pioneer The Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything franchise.

Franchising The Post

Under the new plan, The Post expects to host roughly 30 to 40 events this year, including about 10 major franchise-style gatherings. 

Recent examples include The Ship, an inaugural event focused on leadership and mentorship, and Post Next, a forward-looking franchise that spotlights emerging figures across business, technology, and culture. The publisher is also expanding its Global Women’s Summit and launching a new intelligence platform around global security and defense.

This shift represents a notable departure from the Post’s earlier strategy, which heavily emphasized virtual events. 

At the height of the pandemic, Washington Post Live produced as many as eight to 10 programs per week, reaching an average of 175,000 viewers per event. The virtual model helped advertisers achieve scale and efficiency, but post-pandemic fatigue and growing demand for premium, client-forward experiences have prompted a reassessment.

“Post-Covid, the idea of virtual events being the future hasn’t really held up,” said Eric Fleming, founder of PanPan Productions, who has previously worked with The Post’s events business. “A focused, less-is-more approach—especially one that invests in developing IP and franchise events—is the right move.”

A B2B approach

In addition to shifting its format, The Post is targeting a different audience. 

Rather than mass consumer events, the new experiential strategy will focus primarily on business-to-business audiences, particularly senior decision-makers in Washington and beyond. The publisher sees a significant opportunity to convene executives across sectors like business, innovation, health and wellness, style, food, travel, and policy—audiences that are increasingly core to its growth strategy.

“Clients often come to The Post when they’re looking for that intersection of business, politics, and policy,” said Watford. “We have an outsized role to play in those conversations.”

While sponsorships remain the main monetization vehicle, live events now also function as anchors within larger 360-degree advertising deals, which can bundle content, display, and custom experiences together. About 33% of The Post’s event sponsors return for additional partnerships, with 75% of them participating in three or more events, according to Watford.

Building recognizable event franchises will take time and investment, according to Fleming, who pointed to Time’s success with its Time100 franchise as an encouraging model. 

“This probably won’t be profitable right away,” he said. “It takes years to build awareness, secure big sponsorships, and create the kind of moat you need for these events to stand out.”

Still, both Watford and Fleming said the pivot aligns with broader trends in media and advertising. As publishers compete for attention in a saturated event landscape, companies that can offer distinctive, high-touch experiences—tied to their core editorial missions—are best positioned to succeed.

“There’s no replacement for the serendipity of in-person experiences,” Fleming said.