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In First WH Briefing, Spicer Upsets Media Pecking Order
The major media have warned that Donald Trump would wage a war on the First Amendment. His quick draw to call out bad reporting, boot disruptive journalists, and mock fake news were obvious signs that the freedom of the press would hang by a squib during the Trump administration.
And, lo, it came to pass Monday that all their fears were realized. Did the new President sent red-hatted mobs to smash printing presses and hijack the cable news to run non-stop ads for Trump Steaks? Even worse. In his first official White House press briefing, Sean Spicer called on reporters from the wrong side of the tracks.
#BREAKING: New York Post, not the @AP as tradition has dictated, gets the first question at @PressSec briefing. pic.twitter.com/otoGMNRP6H
— Amichai Stein (@AmichaiStein1) January 23, 2017
First question at @PressSec‘s 1st briefing went to @nypost, then Christian Broadcast net. Traditionally, @AP gets 1st Q. All out the window
— Doug Sovern (@SovernNation) January 23, 2017
Priorities, Day 1: Spicer calls on NY Post, CBN, Univision, Fox News. So far top newspapers & broadcast networks shut out.
— Mike Grynbaum (@grynbaum) January 23, 2017
a;jsidn’ae’lk4i’31;;,,, <cracks ampule of smelling salts> Sorry, had a fainting spell there.
Apparently, in an unwritten rule precious only to careerist Beltway journos, the Press Secretary calls on an Associated Press reporter first then follows with questions to other large media companies. For the first time, Spicer chose less storied agencies for the first handful of questions. Did he blacklist journalists from CNN, the New York Times, etc? No, he got to them a few minutes later. In fact, Spicer stayed as long as the reporters wanted, answering questions for well over an hour.
What so appalled the press was that Spicer upset the media’s caste system. After calling on the New York Post, he went to CBN (Christian cable network), Univision (Spanish-language channel), Fox Business Network, and American Urban Radio Networks (African-American focused service). He also announced the creation of “Skype seats” that will allow reporters who live 50 miles or more from Washington DC to ask questions.
Opening questions to journalists outside of the Acela corridor seems like a big win for the First Amendment and the freedom of the press. More diverse questions and voices are sure to result. It seems the only casualties are the egos of reporters for traditional media.
Published in Politics
Just finished watching the entire thing and there was ne’er a dull moment. Spicer setting the “new sheriff in town” tone and it couldn’t have been more satisfying.
Go with “The Mickey Mouse March.”
This is just too good – smiling big on the first full day – 4 more years minus one day! (or eight)
Y’know I listened to two of our Ricochet podcasts this afternoon and was unpleasantly surprised that they both spent over half their podcast on Spicers rant on the inauguration turnout. I realize it was worth a mention but how can we not discuss some fairly pleasurable executive orders “trumping” some rather displeasurable executive orders? I don’t know, maybe my skin has grown thin.
The press will keep picking on Honey Badger, but Honey Badger don’t care…..(bad language)
Gee whiz, isn’t it the Left that’s always screaming at the Right for being so stuck in tradition? Tsk, tsk.
He urinates German beer in the hall. #HitlerMoustache
I love that guy’s video — 83 million views! Hilarious stuff.
Honey Trump don’t care.
Aw! Wish I’d thought of that!
I too, watched most of it and I thought Spicer was masterful. I had really been worried about management of the Trump message after that awful last-minute presser on Saturday, but it appears Spicer got back on the horse. I do believe he should have moved more quickly away from the one reporter (Jonathan Carl?) Who had the ridiculous “Will you tell us the truth ” question.
You know, Ricochet is so big league GREAT, that President Trump would love the site.
Fantastic people in that place.
Seriously, what have the big media DONE with their privilege?
They don’t deserve it.
Also, just for fun one day, Spicer’s Press Roulette. Pay a small fee, that pays down the national debt. Get your press number put in the Spicer’s Question Lotto machine. Spicer pulls 6 balls,and those reporters get first dibs on questions, in the order they were drawn.
The skype pool is a great idea: can’t believe it wasn’t done before.
Every misstep, every gaffe, every unscripted moment that doesn’t go the way this administration wants it to, will draw cackling from the right as well as the left. You better get used to it.
If you took the correct prognostications of the pundit class from this election and laid them end to end you might not make it to the end of your driveway. That means they’re going to claw for every “I told you so” moment they can get.
Donald Trump, as I am fond of saying, didn’t just break the rules, he rewrote them and he didn’t ask permission.
Those on the right who obsess over every misstep ( Jay , Mona, many many others) deserve as much derision as I can give them.
Calling out a misstep is different. I expect that. I’m talking TDS level obsession before I abuse their pea brains.
I think Honey Badger has got to be the best internet-branding for Trump, or at least a top 3 contender!
Go home, Pseud, you’re drunk!
Now he’s done it! The Middle School Mean Girls Club Outraged Writing Team had bad feelz because Spicer was mean to them!
Let slip the Social Justice Warriors and their hashtags of #OUTRAGE
Does this AP always gets the first question tradition come as news to anyone else? What kind of good ole boy BS is that? I want Breitbart, the Daily Caller, Town Hall, Hotair, PJ media, and every other right of center publication to dilute the MSM scum.
I don’t know about the others, but what if Spicer started every press conference with a question from Breitbart? I do not think it is possible to jam your finger into the eye of the MSM any harder than that. Of course, that would put the pressure on Breitbart to come up with a really GOOD, meaningful, and relevant question, and not some BS “When are you throwing Hillary in jail” stereotypical right-wing nonsense question.
I believe they would be up for it.
It goes back to Helen Thomas I believe. She sat in the center of the front row for about 180 years, until they finally drove a stake through her heart and nailed her coffin shut. After that, the AP inherited the question.
The Anti-Semitic dingbat out of hell?
I never drink while on duty; only while reloading.
Lets make it an economic lesson for them. Make them bid for the rights auction style….
And what a nasty anti Semitic piece of work that (REDACTED) was.
Yes
CNN needs to get over themselves. To my mind they have yet to earn my trust back due to their two most shameful episodes in the 21st century.
First, there is Eason Jordan. In 2003 he admitted that since the end of the 1st Gulf war, CNN had been holding back news items unfavorable to Saddam in order to ‘maintain access’. Here is his own Op Ed in the NYT from 2003. that wasn’t enough to get him canned from CNN, it took this episode in 2005 where he accused the US military of targeting journalists for them to finally kick him loose.
It doesn’t end there. In 2006, CNN is given video by Al Qaeda in Iraq, showing terrorist snipers targeting and killing American troops. CNN consulted their core values and went for the exclusive. I won’t link to them directly, but here are two responses from milbloggers I read and trust. Blackfive.net had this to say. (Note there is a link in the page where Anderson Cooper defends CNN’s decision) Here is Uncle Jimbo’s response.
Given those, not to mention CNN’s sycophantic reaction to FP Obama and FSecState Clinton – CNN deserves the boot.
My actual wish is that The White House Corespondent’s Dinner would go the way of the Passenger Pigeon.
Hear, hear.
No, don’t end it yet, the Correspondent’s Dinner could be awesome this year. How great would it be to have a camera on the New York Times’ table as they enjoy the comic stylings of Larry the Cable Guy.
I would guess that will depend on who is organizing the dinner.
As this is a subject of which I remain ignorant – I went and looked it up. It seems the dinner is held by the White House Correspondent’s Association, ostensibly as a fundraiser and the President attends as a guest. Which to my mind means that the correspondents own the agenda – think Mike Pence going to Hamilton without the cast doing any acting…
Nope – the WHCD is a venue which eliminates President Trump’s advantages. Dump it.