Southwest stuck with its CEO. Now it needs to stick to its roots.

This is the Weekend Edition of Bloomberg Opinion Today, a roundup of the most popular stories Bloomberg Opinion publishes each week based on [Bloomberg]( This is the Weekend Edition of Bloomberg Opinion Today, a roundup of the most popular stories Bloomberg Opinion publishes each week based on web readership. [Southwest CEO Saves His Job and Maybe the Airline]( — Thomas Black [Bob Jordan]( Southwest Airlines Co.’s chief executive officer, has kept his job amid the activist onslaught from Elliott Investment Management, the firm founded by Paul Singer that has earned notoriety for C-suite coups. Photographer: Mario Tama/Getty Images But that came with a price. [Elliott]( must have tapped into a rich vein of investor dissatisfaction because the changes Southwest has offered will give Jordan a much less friendly board, and he will lose his mentor, [Gary Kelly]( who remained chairman after handpicking Jordan to succeed him as CEO in February 2022. Kelly, 69, plans to step down after the company’s annual meeting in 2025, according to a Southwest [statement]( on Tuesday. After Kelly and two Southwest board members met Elliott executives on their turf on Monday, the airline announced that six current directors will leave and that the airline will appoint four new independent directors, which will reduce the board size to 12 over time from the current 15. The board will also name a lead independent director and create a new finance committee. As many as three directors proposed by Elliott may be among the new board members, and it will be worth watching how many and who among the 10 Elliott nominees will be chosen. While Southwest tinkers with its unique boarding procedure, adds premium services including larger business-class seats, begins overnight flights and perhaps even looks at charging for bags, with Jordan at the helm the airline will retain the business model that has made it successful over the years: operating one family of aircraft on domestic and short-haul international routes. Read the [whole thing](. [Hertz Bankruptcy Was Too Good for Shareholders]( — Matt Levine [What Have Biden and Harris Accomplished? Look at These 10 Metrics]( — Bloomberg Opinion columnists [Trump’s Latest Problem? Republicans for Harris]( — Patricia Lopez [The US Will Abandon Europe. But When and How?]( — Andreas Kluth [How Huawei and Apple Swung and Missed for Chinese Consumers]( — Catherine Thorbecke [Inflation Numbers Resolve What the Debate Couldn’t]( — John Authers [India’s Elite Homeowners Are Now Slumdog Millionaires]( — Andy Mukherjee [Powell’s Inertia Leaves the Fed in a Bind After CPI Surprise]( — Jonathan Levin [Big Oil Faces a ‘Good Sweating.’ Some Aren’t Fit]( — Javier Blas More From Bloomberg Opinion Here’s what we’ve been listening to and watching this week. - Sorry, Eric Adams — [New York City’s rats]( are here to stay, Stephen Mihm says. - What actual difference [Taylor Swift’s endorsement of Kamala Harris]( will have on the election will be hard to measure. It’s still a notable moment, Dave Lee says. - Across the US, civic organizations are finding [innovative ways to spur public engagement]( in local government and dispel distrust. Mary Ellen Klas went to Lexington, Kentucky, to see how. Follow Us Stay updated by saving our new email address Our email address is changing, which means you’ll be receiving this newsletter from noreply@news.bloomberg.com. Here’s how to update your contacts to ensure you continue receiving it: - Gmail: Open an email from Bloomberg, click the three dots in the top right corner, select “Mark as important.” - Outlook: Right-click on Bloomberg’s email address and select “Add to Outlook Contacts.” - Apple Mail: Open the email, click on Bloomberg’s email address, and select “Add to Contacts” or “Add to VIPs.” - Yahoo Mail: Open an email from Bloomberg, hover over the email address, click “Add to Contacts.” Like getting this newsletter? [Subscribe to Bloomberg.com]( for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and subscriber-only insights. Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. [Learn more](. Want to sponsor this newsletter? [Get in touch here](. You received this message because you are subscribed to Bloomberg's Opinion Today newsletter. If a friend forwarded you this message, [sign up here]( to get it in your inbox. [Unsubscribe]( [Bloomberg.com]( [Contact Us]( Bloomberg L.P. 731 Lexington Avenue, New York, NY 10022 [Ads Powered By Liveintent]( [Ad Choices](