Celebrity Journalism at the White House

What would you do if you -- and your 32 camera crews -- were granted unparalleled access to the White House for a day? And then you had two full hours of prime-time TV to fill?

There are many mysteries you might try to explore. How does President Obama actually make decisions? What if anything changes his mind? What blows his cool? How does he settle disputes among his advisers? Who is the last one to whisper in his ear? How does he treat his staff? How furious is the competition for his attention? Who wins? Why is he so sure, so confident, that thinking big is the solution to every problem? How do he and his staff really feel about the mess Bush left them? How does the former constitutional law professor reconcile his devotion to civil liberties with a handful of recent decisions that have horrified civil libertarians? Does he have second thoughts?

But sadly those were not the sorts of things that seemed to interest anchor Brian Williams and the more than two dozen NBC News producers responsible for the "Inside the Obama White House" special showing last night and tonight, a show that treats Obama like a celebrity rather than a president.

Part of the problem, most assuredly, was that the White House had the ultimate say in what the cameras were allowed to record, and what they weren't. As Williams says at the show's outset: "Our job is to show as much as we can of the inner workings, especially of the West Wing. The job of the White House is to show us what they want us to see."

And yet what seems to fascinate Williams the most is what everyone is eating. There are, it turns out, apples and M&Ms all over the White House. In fact, the show devotes a whole montage to people pouring, throwing and consuming M&Ms. And the high point of the day, the centerpiece of the hour-long show last night, what Williams calls Obama's "brief shining moment," is a hokey, obviously staged burger run to Five Guys. The cameras literally languish over greasy paper bags full of french fries.

It's the kind of substanceless fawning that leads some to conclude that the press is soft on Obama. But this show wasn't about his politics or his policies. It was a celebration and amplification of the star power of the presidency in general, and of this president in particular. Simply showing him eating a burger they apparently consider great television.

And tonight, we're promised an interview with Bo the dog.

Here's the Five Guys lunch scene:

The NBC crews were at the White House on Friday. Williams notes that the messages of the day were about cybersecurity and hurricane preparedness -- but he doesn't tell us what those messages were, not to mention share any insight into how they were arrived at and whether they were sound or not.

That was also the day that the White House reversed course on a comment by Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor that her critics had seized upon. In its full context, Sotomayor's quote -- "I would hope that a wise Latina woman with the richness of her experiences would more often than not reach a better conclusion than a white male who hasn't lived that life" -- struck me as simply an acknowledgement of the fact that members of oppressed groups could sometimes be more sensitive to injustice than members of the privileged classes.

The White House had defended the quote for several days until Friday afternoon, when -- in an interview with Williams, no less -- Obama suddenly walked it back, saying that Sotamayor regretted her choice of words. "I'm sure she would have restated it," Obama said.

In last night's show, Williams makes a great to-do about what happened and his own role in it. He shows how acutely aware the White House's press operation is of the chatter on the morning shows and the cable networks. But he doesn't explore the actual, quite fascinating decision to change course -- which (like everything of substance that day, it appears) happened off camera.

I suspect that top White House advisers came to the conclusion that in today's political media culture, which subsists on quick sound bites like the one in Sotomayor's speech, the arguments in defense of her comment was simply too complicated to sustain. So they chose a quick strategic retreat. But is that what actually happened? And did Obama or anyone else actually talk to Sotomayor before speaking on her behalf? Those questions are left unanswered. And Williams is apparently uncurious.

All we see is the how, not the why.

There are some amusing moments in the show, such as seeing Obama -- on his way out to Five Guys -- taking orders from his aides and asking: "You want fries?" And White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel, constantly in motion, either breezing by or shooing away the omnipresent cameras, comes off as quite the cock of the walk -- or maybe more of a bantam rooster.

And Obama gets to do a little media criticism. Asked by Williams about his television watching habits, Obama says he doesn't generally watch the cable news shoes: "Mainly because I don't find most of the cable chatter very persuasive. I've used this analogy before, it feels like WWF wrestling. Everybody's got their role to play.... [E]verybody's got their set pieces and, so, I don't feel as if I'm learning anything from the debate."

When Williams trots out the hoary criticism that Obama has taken on too much, Obama responds -- correctly -- that the public doesn't think so, just the media. "What exactly would you have me give up?" he asks.

And over on the MSNBC Web site, there's a really cool interactive map of the White House.

But there's almost nothing of substance here. This presidency, more than most, is more than just the sum of its photo ops. You just wouldn't know it from this show.

Williams tells the Washington Post's Howard Kurtz the experience exceeded his expectations: "We were pretty stunned at how much we were able to record and how natural events seemed to be," he tells Kurtz. "To be in the hallway when the president walks by with a handful of M&Ms, popping them in his mouth as he goes to visit his chief of staff -- it was unbelievable. I don't think the expression 'took up residence' is hyperbolic."

And the Chicago Tribune's Mark Silva has a preview of tonight's installment:

"Sum up this guy," Williams said of Bo, the Obama family's Portuguese water dog, as President Barack Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama and their interviewer stood by the first pup.

"Let me see if he does the whole ..." Obama said, leaning to get a robust, white-pawed shake from the shaggy black pooch.

"See, I taught him that ... that's what I'm talking about," exclaimed the president, playfully growling at his puppy for NBC's cameras.

(This essay originally appeared on the Nieman Watchdog Blog.)

Follow Dan Froomkin on Twitter: www.twitter.com/whitehousewatch

Comments

[suzie z]

I can see by some comments that the Republicans are jealous that they didn't think of some of the light media coverage of the white House. Yes it is a serious place, but it also has some very fun stuff that goes on there and it is OK to show fluff once in awhile. Especially since for the last 8 years we have had nothing but CRAP!

[suzie z]

My sentiments exactly. This was not suppose to be some super serious expose about policy and all of that serious stuff. This was a feel good op about what goes on...some of the lighter side of the Chief Executive. I thought it was really fun and informative. Plus it gives a real human feel to the President. He is human you know.....with likes, dislikes, quirks. Just like all of us. I like that they are portraying him as just that "human". Sure it is a bit of propoganda to show what he wants us to see of him....a real guy, but I really liked it. I like that we have a "real guy" as President.

[janha]

Geez Froomkin, lighten up! I think you missed the whole point. Wasn't this call, A Look Inside the White House or something to that effect. It was interesting seeing the somewhat "nuts and bolts" interactions of a day in the West Wing. It wasn't supposed to be about policy. As a political junkie I get that everyday from newspapers, internet and TV news. Those questions you felt should have been ask are addressed all the time in interviews that this very accessible President grants. This was just a little White House entertainment. Take it for what it was. It was interesting. I don't recall any other administration granting this kind of access.

[jobecky20]

I love our POTUS but I am starting to think -- due to the inane coverage here -- that this is the fluff that NBC was only permitted to show and these were the questions Williams was only permitted to ask. I doubt Williams is that much of a dolt. If he is, then NBC needs to ditch him. Unless, of course, this is some kind of elaborate setup for providing SNL (NBC show) with a LOT of material!

[Britisher]

Well, it was a typical effort; both NBC and the Obama administration earned some PR points for themselves.
32 camera crews to cover the President, the first lady and some staff? None of that level of coverage translated to the screen. They could have accomplished the same result with 8 crews.

Compare to what the BBC did in covering Royal Family recently, which has been shown on PBS recently. It wasn't hard-hitting journalism, but the BBC followed the Royal Family and their staff over the course of a year and delivered a mini-series that dealt with Royal Household as an organizati­on---which is what the Presidency is too.

Maybe NBC ( or ABC or CBS) is working on a longer-term co-operative documentary? I'd hope so, but I'm not betting on it.

Oh, one thing I DID notice that I found jarring was when Brian Williams and President Obama began discussing health care.

The question was prompted, Obama began to talk about the increasing and debilitating costs of health care and then the piece was edited with Brian Williams voice imposed over Obama, saying that Obma "talked about the debt being incurred by entitlement programs such as Medicaid and MediCare".

That summary by Brian Williams distorts everything President Obama has said about those programs to date.
That piece of editorial ledgerdemain seems dishonest as it was added post production, which is to say it was premeditated.

. .

[rwext]

This presidency has been little more than photo ops and rhetoric and spending... and the state run media is nothing more than celebrity fluff

[HummusGringo]

Thanks very much for this post! Your observations are spot on, and echo my own completely.

This cult-of-pe­rsonality, this obsession with celebrity really needs to wind down at some point. When are we going to grow up over here? I really feel horrified at how people are so readily willing to overlook major bad policy decisions unquestioningly (human rights groups are justifiably horrified by many of the POTUS' recent decisions) in favor of a burger montage. Truly disgraceful. I'm very ashamed of the mainstream in this nation at the moment. Here, with Obama, we have a chance--a small window. We MUST hold his feet to the fire if we're going to see any real, substantive progress. He has VERY wealthy people vying for his attention and commitment constantly, and, like it or not, he is living in a bubble, burgers notwithstanding.

Time for the mature people in America to retake the dialog. Again, thank you for your post, I thought your comments were brilliant, and just what we need more of right now.

[serena1313]

We-Are-The-Ones has it right saying this was about humanizing the President -- let me just add -- and his staff. Nevertheless to get a true depiction of their daily interactions it will take more than the few glimpses as seen in the segment.

I like Williams, but he is not, in most cases, a hard-hitting journalist nor a tough interviewer. He is, however, a decent news anchor. Most of what he reports has a human-element to it which is Williams' "signature." That is what made his coverage of Katrina fairly exceptional. But asking probing, insightful questions is not his forte'.

With the media's propensity to focus on trivia, it's ironic one the most often asked questions is, 'given the seriousness of the times, shouldn't the WH attitude be more reflective of that.' But considering the tension and extreme pressure everyone is under that question is terribly misguided. I don't think anyone could work under that much pressure and stay sane. Working in a up-beat atmosphere is not the same as acting clownish or unprofessional or cavalier -- had that been the case, then yes the question would be appropriate.

Although better than some, Williams, like most of his colleagues, is not in the same league as Walter Cronkite. Unfortunately it looks doubtful, at best, that that caliber of reporting will emerge again -- at least not anytime soon. Until then we are resigned to the hard-hitting trivial stories our media presents as "news."

[houseafire]

Well, you all know what they say about opinions..­...Persona­lly, I enjoyed both nights and thought it was interesting :)

[EndBigotry]

Mr. Froomkin,

You may be right about the content of the NBC program.At the same time, please remember the previous shows about Bush and behind the doors of WH nonsense. Did you forget Barney Cam?

Yet again, it is nice to see President Obama joking with his staff, eating burgers etc. instead of being labeled as a "self acclaimed Messiah"

Also keep in mind that, it's a nice distraction from Obama's MidEast trip. The NBC show and the revelations by Richard Wolfe's Book about Bill Clinton-Obama back and forth during the primaries will keep the media busy. Of course, the ADD media audience are attracted to these stories, so Republicans can no longer draw attention to their silly arguments about Obama's "apology" tour to MidEast. Remember what they did during his last rip to Europe?

[crissyo]

Sigh...Danny, you are right on as always...I was wondering if M&M had recently been bought by GE, and that whole segment was just a clever product placement stunt arranged by Alec Baldwin, or Jack Donaghy. I also wanted to know why our tax dollars are being spent on White House M&M boxes when teachers are losing their jobs across the country.

You have been the finest journalist the country has had for eight years or so...please keep up the good work!

[ChiGuy]

While I would wholeheartedly agree that this came off as nothing more than fluff, I am grateful for it all the same.
Too many people in this country get the major portion of their "news" information in 2 minute sound bites each evening, and feel that they've done their due diligence when it comes to keeping abreast of what's going on in the world.
This lightweight stuff in Prime Time is right up their alley, and it only serves to paint Obama in a better light.

Given the vitriolic volleys being lobbed by the right-wingers, I think Obama & Co. will take all the positive PR they can get.

[dollyfedup]

I thought it was innappropriate for him to focus on Sotomoyor during this program. But, I guess he needed to because it was the day they were preparing a response to the criticism of her.

[We-Are-The-Ones]

I thought this piece was similar to pieces done on other presidents. It was intended to humanize the presidency and highlight the work done behind the scene.

I enjoyed it.

[Dupree]

It was exactly like the pieces that were done on previous presidents­....everyo­ne is just suffering from selective amnesia and looking for a reason to complain and whine which is becoming an American past time sport. Before the documentary came on...it was reported that it was designed to highlight the behind the scene and give a glimpse of the President humanity. I guess the "whiners" were expecting something different from this particular president...it was fine to show this for the previous ones that occupied the Oval Office....but for some reason...not this one.

[BuzzingAlong]

Why would anyone expect anything better from Brian Williams?

[Dupree]

I personally happen to like Brian Wiliams very much. To this date, I can not tell whether he is a liberal or conservative...I just know that he is quite professional which is rare these days among the media. He has done this in the past with previous administra­tion....an­d I suspect the same format was followed...but for some reason....people are finding fault about this "look inside the Whte House." Although these kind of coverage has historical basis...it did not just begin with Obama. I guess either they did not watched it with the former presidents were in a similar platform....or they simply just in the habit of complaining about this president and anyone that does not disrespect him and rough him up a bit. Sorry, Brian Williams has class that is in operation regardless of the party of the president he is covering.