Bezos calls Trumps attacks on media 'dangerous'

Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon and owner of the Washington Post newspaper, warned Thursday that President Donald Trump's attacks on media are dangerous for the country.

Bezos, during a question-answer session at a dinner hosted by the Economic Club of Washington, said Trump's attacks risk eroding protections and social norms important for democracy.

"It's dangerous to demonize the media," Bezos said.

"It's dangerous to call the media lowlifes. It's dangerous to say they are the enemy of the people."

He added that "we live in a society where it's not just the laws of the land that protect us... it's also the social norms that protect us. It works because we believe the words on that piece of paper."

Bezos said Trump and other public figures should expect public and media scrutiny, which he called "healthy."

The comments appeared to be the first direct, public rebuke of Trump by Bezos, a frequent target of attacks by the president.

"I do defend the Post," he said. "I don't feel the need to defend Amazon."

But he paraphrased Washington Post editor Martin Baron as saying that "the adminstration may be at war with us, but we are not at war with the administration."

Despite his concerns with Trump, Bezos said that he was not overly concerned about the future of the news media.

"We are so robust in this country. The media is going to be fine," he said during the conversation with economic club president David Rubenstein.

Bezos, whose Amazon fortune has made him the world's richest person, added that he has had "a couple of conversations" with Trump but declined to say what was discussed.

Bezos unfazed by antitrust concerns on Amazon
Washington (AFP) Sept 14, 2018 - Amazon founder and chief executive Jeff Bezos said Thursday he was not worried about the potential for anti-trust scrutiny of the company as it becomes an important economic force.

Speaking at a Washington business gathering, Bezos said it was normal to draw scrutiny but he did not anticipate any actions that would prevent the internet giant from innovating and growing.

"We are so inventive that whatever regulations are promulgated, that will not stop us from serving customers," Bezos said in a question-and-answer session at a dinner hosted by the Economic Club of Washington.

"Customers are still going to want low prices. They're still going to want fast delivery. They're still going to want a big selection."

Bezos said it was unsurprising and even normal to face questions when a company like Amazon becomes so big.

"All big institutions of any kind are going to be and should be examined, scrutinized and inspected," he said.

"We want to live in a society where people are worried about big institutions. That's OK."

But Bezos said he did not see Amazon -- which briefly hit $1 trillion in market value -- as a monopoly, arguing that online sales still represent a small fraction of overall retail.

"Eighty-five percent of sales is still in the physical world. So that's where we face competition," Bezos said.

His comments came as US regulators opened hearings on whether to revamp anti-trust enforcement to consider the dominance of digital giants such as Google, Facebook and Amazon.

Bezos also said no decision had been made on Amazon's second North American headquarters, known as HQ2, for which 20 cities have been selected as finalists, and that the choice would be made as scheduled before the end of the year.

He said "we have made tremendous progress" in the search but offered no clues, despite reports that Amazon board members had visited locations in the Washington suburb of Arlington, Virginia.

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