As Twitchy reported, National Journal’s Ron Fournier published a powerful piece Thursday arguing the importance of access to the president for photojournalists. Fournier’s piece, “Obama’s Image Machine: Monopolistic Propaganda Funded by You,” arrived alongside a letter to press secretary Jay Carney in which numerous news organizations called for more open access to the president.
“As surely as if they were placing a hand over a journalist’s camera lens, officials in this administration are blocking the public from having an independent view of important functions of the Executive Branch of government,” the journalists wrote. That letter was hand-delivered to Carney Thursday. Did Carney or the White House respond? That depends on what you think of the White House’s photo of the day, sent out by official White House photographer Pete Souza.
Pres Obama signs a bill in the Oval Office as press photographers take photos pic.twitter.com/dOBDAXQJV1
— petesouza (archived) (@PeteSouza44) November 22, 2013
@petesouza nice change.
— Alex Roarty (@Alex_Roarty) November 22, 2013
Subtle RT @petesouza Pres Obama signs a bill in the Oval Office as press photographers take photos pic.twitter.com/lGiwUbm89s
— Olivier Knox (@OKnox) November 22, 2013
@OKnox love your wit.
— Dana Perino (@DanaPerino) November 22, 2013
Burn “@Alex_Roarty: @petesouza nice change.”
— Scott Detrow (@scottdetrow) November 22, 2013
Oh snap! RT: @petesouza: Pres Obama signs a bill in the Oval Office as press photographers take photos pic.twitter.com/qktYXg1u4K
— Phil Mattingly (@Phil_Mattingly) November 22, 2013
https://twitter.com/ByronTau/status/403702317800644609
White House photojournalists suspect Obama is trolling them for complaints about lack of access http://t.co/67Sq8dntYG h/t @DustinSlaughter
— Gavin Aronsen (@garonsen) November 23, 2013
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"[Obama] is replacing photojournalism w visual press releases." Admin's disdain for press (when not spying on them): http://t.co/lJelMLKbqn
— Dustin Slaughter (@DustinSlaughter) November 23, 2013
Nikki Schwab writes at U.S. News and World Report:
Some journalists interpreted Friday’s photo as the White House attempting to sweep the issue under the rug, while others figured it a subliminal “screw you.”
…
Julie Mason, SiriusXM POTUS press pool host and former White House Correspondents’ Association board member, saw Friday’s photo and suggested it was an equivalent to a middle finger, a snub and an eye roll. “All of that, plus a drop of anxiety,” Mason wrote in an email. “Behold how sensitive the White House is to claims they shut the press out.”
@ron_fournier Fascinating, when the WH is trying to get away from the indifference meme, they do that. Terrible managers..
— John (@jhf5) November 23, 2013
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