There is a conflict of interest between his role as employee and his statements regarding Bezos. But there would be a conflict of interest between his role as reporter and his statements regarding Bezos. You're not wrong per se, but my perception is that there is a very good chance this person is telling the truth, given that in every case I've known of where a reporter for a major newspaper has disagreed with someone on a matter of record, they've been right. (NB that may still be explained by biases on my end and I'd love to be given a more nuanced view).