The White House Press Corps is the Problem

Writing in the WashPost, Ana Marie Cox suggests the White House press beat oughta be ditched, or at least drastically reconfigured by news orgs, because WH reporters rarely break news. Instead, they sit around and wait to repeat doled out WH info.

Facing a paucity of real news, reporters turn to trivia, claims Cox:

Here are some stories that reporters working the White House beat have produced in the past few months: Pocket squares are back! The president is popular in Europe. Vegetable garden! Joe Biden occasionally says things he probably regrets. Puppy!

But then Cox, anxious to not offend her fellow Villagers, goes astray [continuing directly]:

It's not that the reporters covering the president are bad at their jobs. Most are experienced journalists at the top of their game.

That circle doesn't square. If WH reporters are wasting their time writing too much about nonsense like pocket squares and puppies and wardrobes and on and on, than they are, by definition, bad at their job. So why won't Cox say so?

Cox also ignores the fact that this never-ending trivial pursuit by the press under Obama is an entirely new, and completely voluntary, phenomena. i.e. WH reporters have routinely been locked out of juicy stories for decades, yet managed to not embarrass themselves the way they do today.

WH journalists are most definitely not at the "top of their game." And that's the real problem with beat.

Crossposted at Media Matters' blog County Fair.

Comments

[LeftLeaner]

When was the last time anything newsworthy came out of the Washington Press Corps.

Someone, please tell me.

[NewsCorpse]

I think Cox is right in this case. She is not saying that the WH press is "on top of their game" by virtue of reports about puppies. She is saying that that is all that the WH discloses at these staged events. That being the case, why do news orgs send their top seniority people?

NYU journalism professor Jay Rosen suggested something similar two years ago:
http://www.newscorpse.com/ncWP/?p=1247

It's still a good idea.

[JerryLevy]

In the latest rendition of the budget, congress (with Obama's approval) eliminated the money enabling children in Washington, D.C. to get vouchers to escape the horrible school system they are forced to attend. The program was a huge success and this was done under pressure from the teacher's unions. Not one reporter asked about this and it was only reported on FOX

[MaryKathO]

Just because we live in a '24 hour news cycle' does not mean we must be subjected to 24 hours of mindless drivel. When HUGE stories are missed because the WH press corps is falling all over themselves trying for 'top Alpha-dog' status, the public is ill served. Obama knows this and understands that 'news' is not about 'the puppy', Michelle's arms or fashion choices, handshakes v.s. hugs, royal embraces or snubs, etc. The REAL news is percolating under the surface, requires investigation and deep back-ground, is dependent on source reliability and does not look like the front page of the 'New York Post'...un­fortunatel­y, the WH press is too lazy.

[BBackSoon]

Unfortunately the Obama Admin learned from the Bush Admin. You get access by not embarrassing the Administration. Burn them too many times and you will never be called again.

That in itself is a big part of the problem.

[Wrenigade]

Cox probably hasn't helped her career with the comments, but I think people out here -- that is, in the real world -- believe she is precisely correct. I admire your brevity Ann Marie!

[DRaymond]

The White House press corps are professional journalists, but they are directed by the assignment desk at the desires of the editors. They don't decide while they are driving in on the beltway 'hey, I think I'll do another story on Bo'. They get a cell phone call on the way in saying do up another Bo story please.