Signals from President-elect Trump’s team that a shake-up of the White House press briefing room could be coming are roiling journalists preparing to cover his second term.
People close to Trump have said in recent days he should dramatically change who gets access to the president, suggesting podcasters, internet personalities and media deemed more friendly to him could replace outlets like the major television networks, The New York Times and The Washington Post in the room’s front rows.
Reporters covering The White House, in conversations with The Hill this week, described a feeling of annoyance, frustration and dread at such an idea.
Several reporters declined to comment on the record or requested anonymity to speak candidly about the possibility of a drastically changed press room and the likely kerfuffle it would spark.
“It would be a total mess,” one White House reporter told The Hill this week. “I would expect people would probably boycott the briefings, though that would put certain outlets in a tough spot deciding if they want to go along with what the Trump people are trying to pull.”
Traditionally, the first row of the James Brady Briefing Room has been occupied by the four major networks of NBC, CBS, ABC and Fox; The Associated Press; CNN; and Reuters.
Other larger outlets such as The Wall Street Journal, CBS News Radio, NPR, The New York Times, The Washington Post and Bloomberg have seats in the second row, while some news organizations do not have formal seats in the room. The Hill has a seat in the fourth row.
During President Biden’s administration and Trump’s first term, seat assignments were reviewed and determined by a committee of four members of the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) board.
But the White House communications office ultimately decides which reporters from which outlets receive standing credentials or short-term “day passes” to cover the president.
Karoline Leavitt, Trump’s pick to be White House press secretary for his second term, raised eyebrows among members of the Washington press corps with comments telegraphing she could take a sterner approach when dealing with press coverage and during briefings.
“We hope there will be decorum, certainly, and we will try to instill that,” she said during a recent Fox News appearance. “But we’re not shy of the hostile media.”
Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son, went a step further days later, saying during a podcast episode that the incoming president is considering “opening up the press room to a lot of these independent journalists.”
“If The New York Times has lied, they’ve been averse to everything, they’re functioning as the marketing arm to the Democrat Party … why not open it up to people who have larger viewerships, stronger followings?” he said.
When Leavitt was asked directly if she would bring “different voices into the press briefing room” and change rules for press briefings, she said, “We are looking at those options. And, ultimately, it’s about serving the American people and getting President Trump’s message across to them.”
Neither the WHCA nor its president, Eugene Daniels of Politico, responded to a request for comment on the suggested changes to the briefing room or how the board would respond to mainstream outlets losing their privileges in the West Wing.
Several reporters told The Hill they have not yet heard from the board about an updated seating chart for once Trump takes office.
“I’m sure the association is looking at all of its options, as are individual outlets — at least the smart ones — if and when the Trump administration disrupts the day-to-day logistics of covering the White House,” another veteran White House reporter told The Hill. “What they may discover, though, is friendly coverage quickly can turn into, ‘Why aren’t you keeping your promises?’ coverage.”
Trump and his aides showed a willingness to punish media outlets that covered him aggressively during his first term.
The White House yanked the credential of CNN’s then-chief White House correspondent Jim Acosta after he and Trump argued during a 2018 press conference.
Trump continues to ridicule CNN, he sued CBS News last month and has threatened to use the Federal Communications Commission to crack down on broadcast networks he says are unfair to him.
A source with the Trump transition told The Hill on Tuesday that no plans have been finalized regarding any potential changes to seating arrangements in the briefing room.
Read more:
https://thehill.com/homenews/media/5020455-trump-proposes-shakeup-press-briefing-room/
