We keep hearing how important print journalism is, right? But what’s not said by people say on CNN is how much CNN has contributed to death of newspapers. If you have cable, they stick CNN in your bundle and you HAVE to pay for it. Newspapers? They don’t have that built in revenue stream and they’re suffering.
So, today White House staff tried to move CNN from the front of the room to the back of the room and give the print pooler a view from the front. We don’t care WHY the White House did this, but we are curious why the White House Correspondents’ Association, which assigns the seats, gives the best seats to the TV folks and not the newspaper people in the first place? What’s up with that?
White House staff just came into the briefing room and informed the print pooler that they want them to swap seats w CNN. That would move CNN to the back row from the front. @whca made these seat assignments not staff
— Hunter Walker (@hunterw) April 24, 2020
Every newspaper should get a front row seat and get all of the questions. They are the real journalists after all and not the infotainment people we see every night:
Big kudos to the @WHCA board for refusing to accede to Trump's demand to punish CNN by putting them in the next-to-last last row for this briefing.
— S.V. Dáte (@svdate) April 24, 2020
They are like children. Why not rotate the seats?
I am not going to participate in a briefing if the White House moves reporters from their assigned seats.
— Hunter Walker (@hunterw) April 24, 2020
The pooler who the White House wanted in the front row was Chris Johnson, who writes for the LGBT focused Washington Blade:
Recommended
Pooler @chrisjohnson82 said he would not move unless he heard from the @whca. WH staffer threatened to have Secret Service enforce the swap. WHCA board members ran back into the press office to discuss
— Hunter Walker (@hunterw) April 24, 2020
Yesterday, Johnson complained that he didn’t even get a questions. Well, take the front row seat next time:
I sat through that whole briefing and Trump didn’t call on me even though I didn’t have my hand up. Rats!
— Chris Johnson (@chrisjohnson82) April 23, 2020
In the end, the White House caved but the briefing ended with no questions:
We just got word the briefing will begin in one minute. Reporters were not moved. Shout out to @chrisjohnson82 @kaitlancollins and the @whca for standing their ground.
— Hunter Walker (@hunterw) April 24, 2020
***
Join the conversation as a VIP Member