Discourse.net

Michael, you seem like a smart and well informed kinda guy. Any clue what this is all about?

WH correspondents file another complaint about background briefings
Washington Post | Los Angeles Times
"We protest in the strongest terms the Obama administration's frequent use of briefings done on a background basis," says AP's Jennifer Loven, president of the White House Correspondents' Association. Press secretary Robert Gibbs responds that it's "interesting" that AP had no qualms about relying on unnamed "officials" in breaking the news of Sonia Sotomayor's court nomination. || James Rainey: Team Obama has continued a distasteful and potentially damaging practice.

One of the local blogs claims that this is a sign that Obama's socialist regime is cracking down on freedom of the press.

This is about the ground rules under which WH will agree to talk to the press. There are no legal issues here, just social/political ones. And they are far from new issues.

By convention, politicians can talk "on the record" - it's all quotable by name; "on background" - it's quotable, but not by name, terms of attribution are negotiated eg "a senior WH official"; or, "off the record" - it's not quotable or attributable.

Reporters don't have to agree to the conditions. If they don't agree, they are supposed to not attend the briefing or do the interview. Since there's one WH and many media, the number of media willing to be scooped is small, giving the WH (and other politicians, anonymous critics, etc.) the whip hand in setting the terms. (If the reporters break the rules, they don't get invited back.)

Media, however, get criticized for printing anonymous/pseudonymized comments. And they do get played sometimes. So it's good to see them push back a little, even if it's about 20 years late.

But this has nothing to do with freedom of the press.

Thanks.

Froomkin,
I have come to the realization that you have no idea or clue of what is going on in the world around you. You have been tucked away in your University classroom for the greater part of your life so far away from reality you have no idea of what the hell is going on around you, all you seem to do is feed your ego and paint your self as some great professor when in reality you’re just a bow tie wearing asshole. Someone needs to knock you down off that pedestal you so arrogantly look down from.

And this is before I turn in my grades!

Ha ha, just wait until after you (arrogantly) turn those in!!

Michael, I thought we agreed that your mother-in-law was no longer allowed commenting privileges. Does she call her daughter just "Froomkin" too?