Martín Varsavsky, a Jewish-Argentinian entrepreneur who since 2014 has been on the board of directors of Axel Springer, the Berlin-based European multinational media company that owns Politico, has resigned.
His move on March 26 came one week after he derided Politico for what he termed its “one-sided Hamas support”.
Varsavsky posted his resignation on X, specifically naming Politico.
“I resigned from the Axel Springer board. I find their news coverage in Germany at Bild and Die Welt balanced and fair.
“Regarding Político, I find their news coverage not aligned with my own ethical standards. USA has changed, Germany has changed, hopefully so will Político,” he said.
I resigned from the Axel Springer board. I find their news coverage in Germany at Bild and Die Welt balanced and fair. Regarding Político I find their news coverage not aligned with my own ethical standards. USA has changed, Germany has changed, hopefully so will Político.
— Martin Varsavsky (@martinvars) March 26, 2025
Varsavsky’s resignation was confirmed by Peter Huth, a Springer spokesman, who also stated that it had been anticipated for some time as part of the company’s reorganisation.
Huth insisted that a downsizing of the board of directors was announced months ago.
“We agreed with Martin to end the collaboration by the closing of the [reorganisation] at the latest,” he said on March 27.
Brussels Signal reached out to Huth and Varsavsky for a reaction but had not received a reply at the time of publication.
On March 18, Varsavsky had publicly attacked Politico over what he called its pro-Hamas reporting on Israeli military strikes.
Varsavsky wrote that Politico‘s reporting “fails to mention that the airstrikes were aimed at eliminating top Hamas military and that Israel was successful at doing so.”
“It also quotes casualty figures given by Hamas that are not believed to be accurate.”
He alleged Politico’s writing was “an endorsement of the Hamas terrorist organisation and bad journalism”, adding the “obvious” fact was “that the attack comes after a long refusal by Hamas to hand over the hostages“.
In another post on X, Varavsky stated: “Gaza health ministry is Hamas. The strikes were targeted against the Hamas military, the same ones who were dressed in Hamas uniforms, parading the killing of babies.
“If Hamas returns the hostages, the war is over. But they don’t want peace.”
Left-wing news outlet Politico has been criticised by its own leadership over its pro-Hamas reporting on the Israeli military strikes. https://t.co/c7cjyCSVvw
— Brussels Signal (@brusselssignal) March 19, 2025
According to the UK’s Financial Times, his comments caused problems within the ranks of Politico and its parent company, with some reportedly suggesting Varavsky leave ahead of the allotted time.
Earlier this year, Varavsky had admitted he played a role in the publication of US billionaire Elon Musk’s comment piece in the German newspaper Die Welt, also part of the Axel Springer group, where he endorsed the populist right-wing Alternative for Germany Party (AfD) party, much to the dismay of the Left in Germany.
Varavsky has regularly shared posts on social media attacking what he saw as progressivism and radical Islam, while endorsing right-wing leaders and policies. He has also been a vociferous and staunch defender of Israel.
