Washington Post Cancels Off The Record Salons Following Uproar Over Pay To Play Access

Update: The Washington Post has canceled its planned salon at Katharine Weymouth's home based on the uproar over the sale of access to government officials and members of the Washington Post staff. The publisher spoke to her own paper's Howard Kurtz:

"Absolutely, I'm disappointed," Weymouth, the chief executive of Washington Post Media, said in an interview. "This should never have happened. The fliers got out and weren't vetted. They didn't represent at all what we were attempting to do. We're not going to do any dinners that would impugn the integrity of the newsroom."

Original Post: The Washington Post is responding swiftly to a Politico report that the paper is selling off the record access to administration officials and newspaper editors and reporters for $25,000 and up.

Politico reported Thursday morning on a flier being circulated offering an "underwriting opportunity" for "Washington Post salon," where, for $25,000 per sponsor, organizations and lobbyists can cozy up to administration officials:

"Underwriting Opportunity: An evening with the right people can alter the debate," says the one-page flier. "Underwrite and participate in this intimate and exclusive Washington Post Salon, an off-the-record dinner and discussion at the home of CEO and Publisher Katharine Weymouth. ... Bring your organization's CEO or executive director literally to the table. Interact with key Obama administration and congressional leaders ...

Washington Post executive editor Marcus Brauchli sent the following email to staffers at 10:33 AM Thursday distancing the newsroom from the event:

Colleagues,

A flyer was distributed this week offering an "underwriting opportunity" for a dinner on health-care reform, in which the news department had been asked to participate.

The language in the flyer and the description of the event preclude our participation.

We will not participate in events where promises are made that in exchange for money The Post will offer access to newsroom personnel or will refrain from confrontational questioning. Our independence from advertisers or sponsors is inviolable.

There is a long tradition of news organizations hosting conferences and events, and we believe The Post, including the newsroom, can do these things in ways that are consistent with our values.

The Washington Post made a similar statement to Politico, saying that the flier circulated was merely a draft and that, as presented, it would preclude participation from the Washington Post newsroom:

The flier circulated this morning came out of a business division for conferences and events, and the newsroom was unaware of such communication. It went out before it was properly vetted, and this draft does not represent what the company's vision for these dinners are, which is meant to be an independent, policy-oriented event for newsmakers.

As written, the newsroom could not participate in an event like this.

We do believe there is an opportunity to have a conferences and events business, and that The Post should be leading these conversations in Washington, big or small, while maintaining journalistic integrity. The newsroom will participate where appropriate.

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Comments

[lvdragonlady]

Flippin lobbyists should be outlawed.

[Margaretpoa]

Hear! Hear! Been saying that for decades.

[piloto]

They were but...then Potus changed his mind, like smoking the brown leaf ...like no new taxes....l­ike transparen­cy...like resposible spending..­..list is toooo long.

[evekendall]

De@d as a doornail.

[arpaul]

All these years I've been holding the Post up as an example of fair and unfettered journalism: you know, "comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortabl­e."

Now, in these troubling economic times, it turns out the Post was DIVING FOR DOLLARS, selling its integrity and selling it cheaply.

All the dodging and bobbing and weaving and excuse making can't cover up the fact that the Post got caught up to its elbows in the cookie jar. I'm ashamed for them: probably more ashamed than they are of themselves. I won't be defending the paper anytime soon.

Turns out Liebling was right all along: “Freedom of the press is guaranteed only to those who own one.”

[flamflurm]

You sure it's the Washington Post you've been reading?

[hulagirrrl]

What is the big deal this is America, everything has a price, but some things are better done behind closed doors, so she opened the doors and let us all see what we all suspect and seem to know, that there is no integrity left in politics.

[arpaul]

It's not politics I'm worried about, it's journalism. And I thought--until now--that the Post was an ethical newspaper and a reliable source.

[lbjranch]

I don't think there's much of a difference between the two anymore.

[GeorgeP922]

Somehow I don't think you are happy this was exposed, Sad to see you embrace this nonsense when these are the same people trying to make your healthcare cost more, your air dirtier and all kinds of fun stuff lobbyists push for.

[LITU]

While it's mostly editorializing, the latest edition of The Lowdowner has many good points on lobbyists and the ongoing discussion on health care in the nation's capitol. I am becoming quite impatient with the current president, and it all has to do with his softened stand on so many critical (change) issues, this one being the most egregious.

A politician who misrepresents himself in order to get elected. Whoda thunk it!

[nellie]

How can the post sell access to CONGRESS? It's not up to the post to tell congress members who they can or can't talk to.

[Margaretpoa]

Oh please. Like congress isn't for sale. There are more than a few congresscritters who attend these things regularly.

[nellie]

Moot point.

Putting people in the same room is hardly "access." Lobbyists already have that kind of access. I don't know what the Post was thinking.

[piloto]

Sanctioned by the Anointed one, thats the only way. Bush never did that but he is so evil.

[Belisarius]

This is definitely a black eye for the Post. It makes you wonder who is in charge.

Here is their take on this:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/07/02/AR2009070201563.html

[Margaretpoa]

I stopped reading WaPo when they fired Froomkin. This just justifies my scorn.

[GringoLingo]

If the Obama administration is colluding with newspapers to sell their face-time to lobbyists then we need to find out what member of the administration is responsible and get rid of them as soon as possible!

This is a huge embarrassment not only to the once prestigious paper, but to the administration itself!

[swat68]

The WH is not implicated in this. This is strictly on the Washington Post. There is no problem with the newspaper hosting an event in which polticians and administration officials attend; the problem is the selling/ad­verstising and alluding to "hook ups" with administration officials who may or may not be present.

[GeorgeP922]

First, ignore tr0lls, fail #1

Second, the white house is implicated, so lets hope that Gibbs comes out today and strongly condemns this ploy by the Post.

I suggest you go to DailyKos, alot of people are taking this seriously.
If its a lie, then it's all out war on the Post, if it's true then it's all out war on Rahm Emanuel and whoever else authorized this.

I have faith that it is just the bloviating of a desperate and dying DC paper.
Lets hope that is it and they are bankrupt by year end.

[flamflurm]

OF course the WH was implicated. How in the world was Weymouth going to collect $250k from lobbyists other than by selling reporters and politicians.

[samlu1]

Warren Buffet is the head of the Washington Post. He owns it. Mr. Buffet has been recently fingered as the man who had the $5 billion in "put-options" on American Airlines and UA just days BEFORE 9/11. It was Mr. Buffet who met with the CEO's on the afternoon of 9/11 whose offices just happened to be the ones hit by "planes" just hours earlier for a charity at a military base. (None of the CEO's had ever been to this "charity" before....­.and even though some lost almost their entire staff...th­ey were still compelled to go see Buffet and Bush in Nebraska on the afternoon of 9/11!!!) Buffet has made Billions from increased spending because of 9/11 on insurance and security.

So....does the Washington Post pay for play? Its the least of our concerns..­......

[talkitreal]

The Washington Post is known as the newpaper that will lie, make up news stories, and NOW we find out that they are not using their news credentials to try to make a little money on the side --- They should not cal themselves a news paper, or anything with the word new in it! The Washington Post is a joke!

[Lemmy]

The Washington Times is smiling today.

[whit4brains]

Aw yes...the Moonie paper.

[Whitley2009]

In addition to the W. Times, does the Rev still own all of those machine gun and pistol manufacturing companies?

[GeorgeP922]

We better hope that CNN, NYT, or MSNBC run with this story, because if they don't Fox will run it.

And they should, these are SERIOUS allegations against the white house, if they are true, Obama must find the rat and fire him NOW.

If not true the WH should sue the CEO of the Post for slander and cut all access to them.

And what does Milbank have to say, the clown.

[iblogleft]

Huh?

[GeorgeP922]

Ok I am going to respond to all of you here.

Im not accusing the whitehouse of anything, it is the WashPo that is by implying they can sell you access to white house.

You BETTER believe Fox news is gonna run this into the ground.

CNN and MSM papers will ignore as they do not eat their own, and MSNBC likely will sit back, at most calling for the CEO of WashPo to resign, but not trashing the whole paper as some of their good friends work there.

Also I am not from Politico but from Daily Kos, and we all see it there as a lose lose.
But the benefit is if it is true then it's possible we can fire some rats from the WH team.

If it's not true we get to add the WashPo as an established enemy of transparent politics in America.
This is the paper that has Krauthammer and Dana Milbank on their staff.
Not a very serious paper.

And yes, at this moment in time, Politico has 10x the credibility of WashPo.

I suggest you all research the coverup WashPo did of the Iran Contra cocaine scandal.
Their editor at the time was a former CIA agent, and he fired the reporter who uncovered the cocaine smuggling of the CIA.

[talkitreal]

This is NOT any serious allegation against the Obama White House --- This is an allegation against Washington Post who are trying to make money. This shows how sleezy Washington Post is! They ask for an open press, and transparency from the White House, and then Washington Post goes and tries to sell that access to a third part to try to make money -- Washington Post is sleazy!

[BCLance]

Actually, the advertising flier implies that the WH would participate, which is why Gibbs should release a statement clarifying that the WH had nothing to do with it. That's all Georgep922 is trying to say.

[StaggerLee]

Someone's been reading comments at Politico.

[Margaretpoa]

Politico. Even worse than Washington Post as far as being a right wing partisan organization.

[karronna]

What???? Did you read this carefully? It's the WP who is involved in this not the WH.

[BCLance]

Again, you need to read the post (and original flier) more carefully. Of course the Post looks bad, but the implication is that Obama admin people and legislators were participating. They need to clarify that no one had agreed to do so. The Post created the problem, but the WH should address it.

[Sarge0311]

While this story does NOT actually implicate anyone in the Whitehouse or Congress, there may be some individuals who are culpable.
It most certainly DOES implicate high levels at the Post. And I certainly hope that this is investigated.
However, I'm not going to hold my breath.

[somethingworthsaying]

jesus. what hypocrites!

[Balancement]

Meh. The Washington Post died years ago when it gave up investigative journalism and sold its soul to corporate America. The only thing missing now is a proper obituary recalling when the newspaper was indeed an upstanding example of how the 4th Estate was to behave as the Citizens' Voice and watchdog.

Of course they'll have to go back a *lot* of years to find those examples.

[HappyRabbit]

What he said.

Back to Watergate and before, The Post was truly an Independent Newspaper and a beautiful thing to behold. More recently, it is just a big a piece of carp as any other disseminator of news releases.

[inorbit]

Still, this is a very sad day for The Post.

[GeorgeP922]

If the CEO doesn't step down, or at least fire people, then hopefully it will begin the end of the post.

Inaction should cause Keith and Rachel to do a WaPo blackout.

[xargaw]

Any self respecting subscriber would cancel their subscription. The Washington Post =Corporate Shill.