CNN's senior media correspondent Brian Stelter was practically giddy Monday morning to learn that "MS NOW" was "scooping up" dozens of journalists as part of its rebranding effort, now that it's been dumped by NBC News. Stelter didn't name any names, but maybe some of the "journalists" dropped by MSNBC will be hired back at drastic pay cuts.
But the real bug up Stelter's butt is who is calling themselves journalists these days. The White House Correspondents Association had a stranglehold on the seating chart in the White House briefing room, but President Donald Trump mixed things up a bit by adding some fresher blood to the pool.
Keep in mind that Stelter's not saying any of this; he talked to a grumpy veteran White House correspondent who said it for him. How is the administration allowing conservative influencers (and Fox News' Peter Doocy) to ask questions at something so important as peace talks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky?
The Trump White House has sought to reshape the press corps in its favor this year, and today showcased how well the effort has succeeded >>>
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) August 18, 2025
Veteran White House correspondents privately grumbled as a MAGA online personality dominated the Q&A during a photo op with President Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Trump was mostly served set-ups for his own talking points: https://t.co/x8VxN22nwn
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) August 18, 2025
"This display, especially in front of foreign leaders, is so embarrassing," a WH correspondent remarked to me. "Many of the questions aren’t designed to get answers, but to create another confrontation or make Trump look good. That's not journalism."
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) August 18, 2025
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Was this a CNN White House correspondent, or is Stelter just the guy they call to complain to? The media has been embarrassing itself for years now, but they still don't get it.
"High schoolers could do a better job than some of these people," the correspondent added.
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) August 18, 2025
At issue: The makeup of the press "pool." Full story here >>> https://t.co/x8VxN22VlV
Agreed … kick out CNN and the rest of the legacy media and bring in some unbiased high schoolers.
Stelter and Liam Reilly write:
Monday’s pool, for example, included several conservative news outlets — Fox News, Breitbart and the Washington Examiner — but excluded the wire services that used to be a backbone of the press corps.
Fox’s Peter Doocy asked the pair of presidents five questions. The other primary voice was Brian Glenn, a pro-Trump pundit who works for Real America’s Voice, a MAGA streaming startup featuring shows by Steve Bannon and Charlie Kirk.
Glenn was allowed into the Oval Office event by White House aides despite not being assigned to the pool on Monday.
I'm telling!
The makeup of the press pool was noticed by some viewers, including Johanna Maska, who worked in the Obama White House press office.
Pointing out Glenn’s highly publicized relationship with a Republican congresswoman, Maska wrote on X, “Marjorie Taylor Greene’s boyfriend and Steve Doocy’s son are dominating what seems to be an impromptu press conference, where the stakes of the meeting are nothing less than ‘peace in our time.’ The absurdity of the moment sometimes belies the seriousness of what’s at stake.”
Brian Glenn asked a good question of President Trump: “Do you think the American media really doesn’t even want a peace deal?” Glenn asked. “Because they’ve been so critical of you every step of the way as you lead the charge for peace.”
The mainstream press already had its stories written that Trump's Friday summit with Vladimir Putin was a failure that accomplished "nothing," as a peace deal wasn't struck. It got Zelensky and Europe's leaders to the White House, though.
Get bent
— Barr Wilf (@BarrWilf) August 18, 2025
They got rid of the garbage
— DK 🌽🇺🇸🐂 (@toottootchoo) August 18, 2025
Still more to go
Yeah but you also pretend to be a straight man, so clearly we can't believe you
— Midnight 🕛 (@EruditeMidnight) August 18, 2025
Yes. Way more embarrassing than giving a dementia addled President the questions in advance. pic.twitter.com/yt09EQx517
— Stuck (@StuckInMiddleU) August 18, 2025
Are you BIG MAD?
— AKB_TX (@akb_tx) August 18, 2025
CNN helped bring us to this.
— Dee Ash (@Men101) August 18, 2025
Thank you and tapper and the rest of you fucking hacks for making that possible
— WitchPlease (@WitchPlease1972) August 18, 2025
You gonna be ok Tater? pic.twitter.com/97mDJO7QrS
— Harry Balzitch (@NJDetox) August 18, 2025
Is there any subject on which you are not adversarial with Trump ?
— Kevin (@Kevin74767525) August 18, 2025
Meanwhile, CNN has on panelists who don't even know that Trump's already brokered six peace deals … probably because they watch CNN.
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Editor's Note: The mainstream media continues to deflect, gaslight, spin, and lie about President Trump, his administration, and conservatives.
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