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

[GringoLingo]

Why has the Obama administration given its staff to the highest bidder? Why are they meeting with lob. byists and why is a newspaper their p. imp?

[GoldsteinD]

Only ignorant people would ever think that ANY US president would not meet w/ lobbyists?

[dems08]

find out the facts rather than accepting that this article is the truth

[1dogs2]

Critical thinking isn't your long suit, is it? What evidence is there for any of the premises underlying your questions beyond WaPo's obvious desire to make money peddling influence there is no reason to believe it has?

[GringoLingo]

Why has the Obama administration given its staff to the highest bidder? Why are they meeting with lobbyists and why is a newspaper their pimp?

[JRsNana]

It wasn't funny or rational when you posted it the first time. Why just annoy us by posting it twice?

[GringoLingo]

You're not exactly bright now are you?

[aloevera456]

So reporters, lobbyists and politicians will have a chance to sit down and have a quiet little off-the-record session. Talk about stacking the deck. Any member of the Administration that attends one of these should be fired. Any member of Congress that attends one should be outed. We already knew this is how it works and has always worked but seeing the $$$ attached to it is just so sleazy.

[dems08]

why the knee jerk reaction to a questionable article?

[Lambasted]

There goes the neighborhood. Sad to see the ultimate demise of what once used to be a fine newspaper.

Call me naive but having grown up in the DC area, I always looked upon WP as a mainstay in forthright journalism. Sure it has its biases but on the whole, I really thought it also had integrity. I am crushed to see it now succumb to the pitfalls of greed and poor taste.

I should have taken the hint that WP was on the rocky road to Sell-out City when a few years back the WP's website turned into Times Square, with flashing, blinking advertisements littering the front page. They shrunk the available space for actual news reporting to make way for the paid content. As for the news items: fonts became smaller, making news items more difficult to locate and harder to read; news headings were abbreviated; the number of news items reported was reduced; sections were removed, relegated to a less prominent drop-down menu.

The WP is now a pitiful shell of its former self.

[prider]

Your headline is unfair.

[Dennis]

We always knew what they were. Now we know the price.

[GardenerNorCal]

$25,000 seems a little low.

[koyak23]

And somewhere David Broder is saying, as long as it's bi-partisan, what's the problem ?

[itolduso]

Yeah, but, is there anyone willing to bet that this story will end up on the front page of most newspapers in America? (outside of Washington & N.Y., my money's on page six, under the ad for the new joint pill) Sad to say...tomo­rrow most Americans will still be reading about M.J.' will & Sanford's affair.

[lapdogs]

NOT A CHANCE!!

Thus was born the Internet(s)

[KennyFox]

I have been a mainstream newspaper (newswire) reporter for 10 years. THis industry is not only toxic, but it is going down the toilet. Fox started it with their demogoguery; and now we have the WaPo giving propaganda groups access to spin reporters. Hmmm....I wonder, if they paid a quarter million for access, will they get their story out about public health options, about war for WMDs that dont exist, about Israel's illegal settlements, about TARP, will they who paid get the story out exactdly as they wanted? OF course, otherwise, why pay? I wonder if WaPo will call it what it is then, an advertorial? Probably not. May that paper die a sudden death.

[stevemarvin]

At long last, complete transparency in corruption. And for an extra $50,000 Bob Woodward will deep throat you, off the record.

[NicoloM]

It's always disturbing to see how the sausage is made--
The revelation of paying for the opportunity to manipulate minds is only surprising because of the handicapping effects of a narrative, paradigm, or frame that suggests that the press is an impartial, liberal or a journalistic fourth estate.
This story is no surprise viewed from the frame that many aspects of the business of media are the manipulation of opinions by people who can afford to do so-- propaganda. (Claims of propaganda by the extreme fringes have created a repugnance for the term equivalent to "conspiracy theorist", much like the rants about the "liberal" media cut deep grooves in our perceptions and make us ineffective in dealing rationally. And don't confuse the individual with the institution-- that there are people like Helen Thomas doesn't negate the ownership and control of the product. To be effective, propaganda does not have to control all of the media, in fact the Post and the NYT are good examples of how effective propaganda is when mixed in with what occasionally appears to be objective reporting.­)
Is it surprising that for $25k and up you get to manipulate the manipulators?
What is surprising and disturbing is that after the past eight Orwellian years, that we would be surprised. We are trapped in a "groundhog day" cycle of being confronted with the effects of propaganda and not being able to achieve the catharsis to recognize or deal with it.

[Ramus]

Not all of us are surprised. And I agree with you 100%.

[polybius]

One answer might be to advance a national news agency, modeled on the BBC. A national televised / radio network, only particially financed with private money, with the bulk being from the government.

Keep the big networks honest. Maybe most Americans DON'T want trashy "reality" shows on 24/7 and the only broadcast media focused the 24/7 news cycle that does one trashy subject at a time, and has depth what so ever.

There is plenty of money in the government's treasure chest. Lets give less to big pharm, lockheed martin, and big agri and re-invent NPR --> into a national television network with professional news.

STEP One in changing the conversation is making the people behind the microphone act responsibly and point the microphone where it needs to go.

Not in the face linsay lohan / Michael Jackson's relatives etc etc --> but into face of ppl driving our country into the ground : The special interests who only care about increasing this quarter's profit margin +.05% higher vs the long term interests of our country.

[GeorgeP922]

Not surprised from the same terrible paper that covered up the Iran Contra Drug scandal.

More and more, I hope the establishment papers fail.

Don't forget, this outfit still has Dana Milbank on it's payroll.

[KennyFox]

Ive never picked up the WaPo ever and Im a Knight Fellow. Eff WaPo! Down with the ship, beatch!

[itolduso]

Any administration official that shows up for these 'conferences' should be fired and turned out into the street....­. let them do their whoring the traditional way.

[raker]

Anyone remember when former NBC reporter Linda Ellerbee was skinned alive for doing a coffee commercial, which this was seen as a breach of journalistic ethics beyond the pale. Isn't that precious?

[BCLance]

I was just remembering that. Ah, the good ol' days...

[Madmac]

If this is true then the Washington Post has ceased to be a legitimate news organization. RIP