Washington Sun Launches With 28 Washington Post Veterans

The Washington Sun officially launched Wednesday with an expansive 110-person newsroom, boasting a significant number of former Washington Post journalists. Editor-in-chief Tim Grieve announced the new publication, which has more than doubled its staff in the past six months. At least 28 of its employees are ex-Post journalists, including columnists Dana Milbank and restaurant critic Tom Sietsema.

Former Post congressional reporters Paul Kane and Kadia Goba, as well as economics reporter Jeff Stein, have also joined the Sun. The outlet has entered into a licensing agreement with Capital Weather, formerly known as the Post's Capital Weather Gang, to provide daily weather forecasts. This expansion comes after The Washington Post reduced its newsroom in February, laying off over 300 journalists.

Politico co-founder Robert Allbritton is behind the venture, which initially planned to rebrand as "The Star" before settling a trademark dispute with media executive Dovid Efune. The Sun will introduce a paywall later this month, with subscribers paying $9.99 per month. Its newsletters will remain free. Milbank described the experiment as an attempt to determine whether a general-interest outlet combining national and local coverage can thrive in the digital era, though its success is by no means assured.