Politico Board Member Quits Over Outlet's Hamas Coverage

A longtime board member of Politico's parent company, Axel Springer, has resigned after publicly accusing the U.S. news outlet of "one-sided Hamas support," further inflaming tensions between the publisher and President Donald Trump's administration, the New York Post reported.

Martín Varsavsky, an entrepreneur from Argentina and supervisory board member at German media conglomerate Axel Springer since 2014, announced his resignation Wednesday following his harsh criticism of Politico's coverage of the Israel-Hamas conflict.

"Regarding Politico, I find their news coverage not aligned with my own ethical standards. USA has changed, Germany has changed, hopefully, so will Politico," Varsavsky wrote in a post on X.

He also accused the outlet of "one-sided Hamas support" after it published an Associated Press story detailing Israeli airstrikes in Gaza last week.

Varsavsky, who identifies as Jewish and has called himself a friend of Elon Musk, had previously clashed with Axel Springer's editorial direction. In a now-deleted X post, he accused company journalists of being "woke."

His latest remarks have reportedly fueled internal debate about accelerating his departure. However, sources told the Financial Times that his exit was already in motion as part of internal restructuring.

Axel Springer, which acquired Politico for $1 billion in 2021, is reorganizing in anticipation of a $14.85 billion separation from private equity firm KKR. As part of the overhaul, the company is splitting its media operations — including Politico, Business Insider, and German newspapers Bild and Die Welt — from its classifieds division, now controlled by KKR and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board.

The media group is also considering selling its marketing arm, Awin, to sharpen its focus on core journalism properties.

Varsavsky's departure comes amid ongoing friction between Politico and the Trump administration.

Trump recently labeled Politico a "leftwing rag" and directed federal agencies to cancel subscriptions. The publication has since been removed from Pentagon offices and replaced by more conservative alternatives. Trump has also accused Politico of receiving $8 million from the U.S. Agency for International Development — a claim that has been widely disputed.

Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner, a vocal critic of "woke" culture and an admirer of several Trump-aligned figures, attempted to downplay Trump's attacks on Politico, calling them a "misunderstanding." However, Döpfner praised Vice President J.D. Vance's controversial recent speech as "inspiring."

The company has declined to comment on Varsavsky's resignation. The Post reported it had sought responses from Varsavsky and Politico, but neither party had responded by publication time.

Axel Springer's editorial code firmly states its pro-Israel stance: "We support the Jewish people and the right of the State of Israel to exist."

Still, Varsavsky's exit comes amid growing scrutiny over his behind-the-scenes role in facilitating Musk's guest opinion column in Die Welt am Sonntag, in which Musk endorsed Germany's far-right AfD party and decried "leftist over-regulation and Islamist colonization under the guise of diversity."