White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt provided an impressive statistic regarding the accessibility of President Donald Trump just a few months after he assumed office.
During a media event organized by Axios co-founder Mike Allen, Leavitt emphasized the differences in accessibility between President Trump and former President Joe Biden. She remarked on how many media outlets overlooked Biden’s tendency to avoid the press and largely remain out of sight during his four years in office.
Allen inquired of Leavitt, ‘You have direct access to the Associated Press, which reaches half of the global population daily. The most iconic image of President Trump, known as the fight, fight, fight photo taken after the assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania, was captured by Evan Vucci, the chief photographer for the Associated Press in Washington. Are you concerned that history may be obscured due to these new limitations?’
I do not perceive these as limitations. Instead, we consider them as opportunities to enhance access to a wider array of outlets, voices, news sources, journalists, and media organizations. It is essential that no single outlet monopolizes the briefing room or the 13-member press pool that reports on the president.
Consequently, we have taken steps to ensure that more print media, such as Axios, have an increased opportunity to participate in that press pool. There are thousands of media outlets with White House press credentials, and hundreds of them actively cover the beat on a daily basis. It raises the question of why one outlet should consistently enjoy the privilege of being part of the 13-member press pool.
The modifications we have implemented have fostered greater transparency, accessibility, and inclusivity for a diverse range of outlets and journalists, which I believe is beneficial. We have observed these positive outcomes in practice.
Leavitt stated, “We initiated this. I trust you are all still receiving your news updates, correct? You continue to learn about the administration’s actions daily, as we have competent journalists present in the room reporting on the president consistently.” Allen interjected, inquiring, “The opposing viewpoint is reflected in a statement from the White House Correspondents Association regarding the alterations made by the White House to the role of wire services in the press pool. The statement asserts that the government should not have the authority to control the independent media that reports on it. Do you concur with that assertion?”
I believe that a select group of journalists who make up the board of the White House Correspondents Association should not have the authority to determine who is permitted entry into the Oval Office or who is allowed to travel on Air Force One.
All media outlets should have equal access,” Leavitt stated. “Furthermore, this is precisely what we are implementing. If our intention were to generate favorable coverage for the president or to ease the situation for him or the administration, we would not permit certain so-called ‘fake news’ leftist organizations to participate.
However, we continue to include them. No one has been excluded; rather, we have allocated additional opportunities to a wider range of outlets and voices,” she added.
According to a report by The Daily Signal in August 2023, the number of journalists granted access to the White House has decreased by 31% over the last three months, resulting in 442 fewer reporters holding the prestigious ‘hard pass’ due to new regulations introduced in May.
