April 30, 2011

"In a pants-on-fire moment, the White House press office today denied anyone there had issued threats..."

"... to remove Carla Marinucci and possibly other Hearst reporters from the press pool covering the President in the Bay Area. Chronicle editor Ward Bushee called the press office on its fib..."
"It is not a truthful response. It follows a day of off-the-record exchanges with key people in the White House communications office who told us they would remove our reporter, then threatened retaliation to Chronicle and Hearst reporters if we reported on the ban, and then recanted to say our reporter might not be removed after all."
Marinucci was in the "print pool" at an Obama event, and she used her cell phone to make a video of protesters singing "We paid our dues/Where's our change?"



The White House seems to have objected to a reporter taking advantage of her "print pool" access to do something other than writing. Obviously, they've also got to be annoyed by the negative coverage. And now, the Chronicle, revealing confidential communications, is continuing to make the White House look bad.

Meanwhile, Marinucci isn't just some print reporter who spontaneously grabbed her cell phone to capture an unplanned event:
In fact, Carla and her reporting colleague, Joe Garofoli, founded something called "Shaky Hand Productions" - the semi-pro, sometimes vertiginous use of a Flip or phone camera by Hearst reporters to catch more impromptu or urgent moments during last year's California gubernatorial race that might otherwise be missed by TV.

The name has become its own brand; often politicians even ask if anyone from Shaky Hand will show at their event. For Carla, Joe and reporters at other Hearst newsrooms where Shaky Hand has taken hold, this was an appropriate dive into use of other media by traditional journalists catering to audiences who expect their news delivered in all modes and manners.
Well, this is great publicity for Marinucci's "semi-pro" enterprise, isn't it? But if she has this enterprise, should she be able to exploit "print pool" access? The Chronicle editor Phil Bronstein says that all journalists have their little video cams now and that, even though many journalists are denied access altogether, the ones who do get in should be able to use their ordinary tools.

And then there's the threat argument that the Obama administration will wreck its "hip, transparent and social media-loving" image if it doesn't back off on this issue.

60 comments:

traditionalguy said...

If Hearst reporters are not obeying the media bosses appointed by King Obama, they had better not expect to see any Federal Disaster Aid when the next earthquake hits California.

Lincolntf said...

The takeaway from this story:
Obama is a huge pussy.
Spend a little less time crying about the mean reporters and a little more time straightening out the disasters you've been creating and people might give a crap, Mr. President.

vet66 said...

Typical of this administration trying vainly to control the message. Arrogance run amok. The Obamaites believe the gospel that they can do no wrong and answer to nobody except the perverted philosophy of end justifying the means.

One more example of the their true intentions regarding our constitution. I wonder how long it will take these dullards to figure out that they are losing the media shills who helped put them in power by distorting the truth? Is there a lemon law governing sitting Presidents?

Shouting Thomas said...

Those Hearst reporters must be racists.

Big Mike said...

Let's be fair. "Open and transparent" did not necessarily mean "truthful." The Obama administration lies pretty transparently.

Shouting Thomas said...

From a purely political standpoint, it's hard to find anybody to like in this story:

o San Francisco reporters?
o Gay spoiled brats?
o Obama admin?

No sane people involved in this story.

Brian Brown said...

the Obama administration will wreck its "hip, transparent and social media-loving" image

Um, who exactly, has this "image" of the "Obama Administration"?

Crazy people?

Fred4Pres said...

They will make up. Like some neighbor couple fighting till they realize you can hear them. They know we are paying attention now.

PaulV said...

The most transpatant admistration ever, check that, liars ever.

george said...

Isn't there a czar for Flip cameras?

Blogger Account said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

This issue will not work. Obama and Biden cannot be defeated. I am seen the liberals at work. You in the GOP know nothing. You are nothing. The only want to defeat Obama/Biden is to do better. But, the GOP cannot. Ergo, Q.E.D.

spunky said...

But if she has this enterprise, should she be able to exploit "print pool" access?

This and the related comment at the beginning of this post, make no sense. "Exploit"? That's a pretty loaded word, a pejorative, to describe someone doing their job. In fact, replacing it with the more neutral "using", I'd wonder what the problem is. Reporters use their access to report on the events to which they access to.

Hello?

Lincolntf said...

"...the Obama administration will wreck its "hip, transparent and social media-loving" image..."

Yeah, Obama renounced that image while speaking at Hampton U. about a year ago. Or at least he made some lame attempt to, for reasons that are foggy to me. Just babbling?

..."With iPods and iPads and Xboxes and PlayStations, -- none of which I know how to work -- information becomes a distraction, a diversion, a form of entertainment, rather than a tool of empowerment, rather than the means of emancipation,"... Obama said.

Anonymous said...

Althouse did well to lasso New Media Meade before he had a chance to meet his soulmate out there in San Francisco.

BJM said...

When a Dem Pol loses Phil Bronstein they are in deep shit.

Anonymous said...

Obama administration will wreck its "hip, transparent and social media-loving" image if it doesn't back off on this issue.

Barry will wreck anything that stands in the way of his reelection.

Anything.

KCFleming said...

"...White House communications office who told us they would remove our reporter, then threatened retaliation to Chronicle and Hearst reporters if we reported on the ban"

1) Well, it works for Hugo Chavez.

2) Hey, rubes!

3) Installation of Marxist software can damage the US operating system. Are you sure you want to proceed?

Anonymous said...

OT- Meanwhile cracks are appearing in Barrys clay feet.

"Obama's father forced out at Harvard"

madAsHell said...

Another unforced error!

w/v: Suess - Obama's name does sound like character in a Dr. Suess book.

Sprezzatura said...

Did this gal share her video w/ the other papers who she represented in the pool? How about the TV/video news outlets that were banned from the event?

It seems un-admirable to go in as a representative of the print pool, to an event where video is banned, so you can get some exclusive video for your own (i.e. not the pool you represent) side project.

And, if the press should be allowed, w/o administration push-back, to go beyond the agreed to ground rules for a pool, why don't they just secretly record and post all "off the record" conversations. Or, are we saying they can only go back on their word in some situation?



P.S. Why is the paper referring to anonymous people in the administration. They should name names. Who supposedly threatened them? And, is it too much for a paper to provide exact quotes? What exactly did these anonymous folks say?

The WH is saying that they did tell the reporter they wouldn't be allowed to represent the pool unless they promised to follow the agreed to rules, like everybody else. Is that the threat?

KCFleming said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
KCFleming said...

pbAndj is a good doggy.

Good doggy!
Sit!
That's a good girl.
Now stay. Staaaay.

Seeing Red said...

Considering the media has an unspoken agreement that the won is unassailable, what she captured by flip phone could be considered an exclusive.

kk said...

At least they didn't lock her in a closet.

Sprezzatura said...

pogo,

Your dog training techniques are better the second time around: "not" vs "now."

But, you don't want to repeat the command (e.g. "stay") twice w/o a correction. And, you shouldn't change your pronunciation.

So,
"Now stay. Staaaay."
becomes,
"Stay. [assuming disobedience] No. Stay."


Not that I'm pulling rank, but my 8mo dog is already halfway through it's fourth dog school. I'm here to help.

KCFleming said...

Spelling corrections are indeed the highest form of blog criticism.

edutcher said...

From what I've read, Marinucci is liked and respected by her peers. If they sit on this, they'll be shown up for the unprincipled cowards they are.

Now that things are looking more than a little shaky for Little Zero's future, he's striking out against anyone who displeases him, regardless of whether it's friend or foe.

When the people who made the emperor and protect him start going to the guillotine, it usually doesn't end well for the Emperor.

vet66 said...

Is there a lemon law governing sitting Presidents?

It's called impeachment.

SteveR said...

Amazing transition from inovative and techno saavy campaign.

Jason (the commenter) said...

If only Obama had done nothing!

Sure, the video got on Drudge, but I didn't think much of it and I'm sure most of his supporters didn't either. But to follow up the video by punishing the reporter? That's just stupid. And the punishment was the type of thing that would seriously hurt the reporter's career, so obviously they had a great incentive to make it public.

Of course now all sorts of journalists will be trying to martyr themselves by reporting disparaging truths about Obama. His handling of the press, like his foreign policy, might work in Chicago, but are liabilities in the larger environment of the country and the world.

Seeing Red said...

Those dead white guys knew what they were doing.

Jason (the commenter) said...

Obama is a little fish who still thinks he's in a small pond.

Charlie Eklund said...

Time to break out the "Obama is like Nixon" tag.

Unknown said...

Well, the recount does point to one fact. Errors were made, maybe not in Kloppenburg's favor, but errors nonetheless. Ms. Kloppenburg took a chance that the error count would fall her way. So, what I am saying is Kloppenburg had the right to request a recount and it appears at this point she will not gain the necessary votes to overcome prossers lead. End of story.

Larry J said...

I have no trouble remembering how the Press covered protesters when Bush was president. No matter where he went and no matter how small the protest, it was on the news. It seemed the Press wanted to carry forth the narrative of how unpopular Bush was and were doing their best to make it happen. Funny how seldom that happens with Obama and how prissy he gets when it is shown. What a pathetic little man Obama is.

Synova said...

I think there is something fundamentally wrong with political figures excluding cameras. *Not* excluding television crews! A case could be made that television crews and reporters are intrusive and disruptive. But the notion that political figures can ask not to be recorded, not filmed with a camera or phone and not recorded with sound, in a situation that is arguably official and public, is something I find offensive to liberty and democracy.

The local pols here in New Mexico seem to have been going that way. They refuse to have a debate with their opponent at all (which I think they ought to be *forced* to do a minimum number of times) and then when they have the debate, a debate!, they exclude cameras? WTF?

Someone with a cell phone recorded the Democratic candidate here, in a "debate" with Heather Wilson, stating that she was against "pay for play" and that all anyone would get for their money from her office was access! And then it was all about the person who "broke the rules" and recorded what she said?

How does that work?

Titus said...

This is outrageous.

Paco Wové said...

"Arrogance run amok."

Thank you, thank you, thank you, vet66, for being one of only a handful of people left in the English-speaking world who knows how to spell "amok".

"I am seen the liberals at work."

That's a classic, AP, up there with "All your base are belong to us". Mind if I use it?

Paige Nelson said...

Is the singer who left wearing a Che t-shirt? It looked familiar but I couldn't nail it.

Ralph L said...

Nice to see some MSM reporters get on their hind legs around Obama.

Lucius said...

@Amerca's Politico: "Ergo, Q.E.D."

--What a comedian. I'm going to have to use that.

Karl said...

The comments following the article are interesting.
I liked this one:
"If you voted for Obama in 2008 to prove you're not racist, you'll have to find someone else to vote for in 2012 to prove you're not an idiot."

Anonymous said...

"Guillotine those who oppose Obama!"

"What do you mean it's my turn?"

The French Revolution progresses

Donald Sensing said...

"I don't care. Obama is awesome!"

This is now my all-purpose response to any news related to anything.

BoboFromTexas said...

Bully the Press and then lie to the American people about it?

Yes we can!

Is this the Hope&Change that you voted for?

Unknown said...

When the police raid a whorehouse, what do you expectthe madame to say?

Brian said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
jkmack said...

Wow, all this hoopla about what?


It is obvious to everyone that it was Bush's Fault!

Buford Gooch said...

I think American Politico is either the dumbest commenter at Althouse, or English is not her native language.

kent said...

key people in the White House communications office who told us they would remove our reporter, then threatened retaliation to Chronicle and Hearst reporters if we reported on the ban

"This is what democracy looks like!"

Walt Lucas said...

I am probably at opposite ends of the political spectrum from Carla Marinucci, but she is a heck of a reporter.
Having covered the California Republican Party convention with Carla Marinucci and Joe Garofoli, they are usually racing the rest of the press pool to post their stories to their SFgate Politics Blog. They are well known for their "Shaky Hand" videos, anyone who has ever looked at the Chronicle's site would know this. The press liaison for this event either did not lay down the ground rules or didn't know that Marinucci is after the story in any way she can cover it.

You should have seen her when the Cal GOP tried to ban the press from a luncheon after they had said we could cover it. The shaky hand came out and they changed their mind.

Seeing Red said...

Rep. Joe Wilson is looking prescient.

Unknown said...

to me the rule on video is a distinction without a difference. As the pool reporter she was free to write and quote the protesters, and I believe the reports of protesters at the event were public very quickly. To have a hissy fit about the video getting out is a major unforced error, and to try and bully a paper as liberal as the Chronicle is even dumber than when they tried to boot FoxNews from the pool.

Paul said...

Expect the lower Obama goes in the polls the more he will act like this.

He is a narcissist and criticism really puts a bur under their saddle.

The only way to hurt him more is to laugh at him. He just might go nuts if that happens.

Unknown said...

Carla Marinucci is a long-time committed leftist who never misses an opportunity to bash Republicans or conservatives. She adored Obama during the election. I think this thing is hilarious. Hah.

Fen said...

True. Its hard to feel sympathy when the little Eichmanns get their face bashed in by the Gestapo.

furious_a said...

White House committed three mistakes:

1. Punched below their weight.
2. Picked a fight with someone who (despite declining circulation) still buys ink by the barrel.
3. Got caught, and called out in print in a lie.

The White House is now messing with their Water Carriers' livelihoods. "Afraid of Fox News" now becomes, uh, "Afraid of the Chron". The Chron, really?

furious_a said...

Oh, and I guess this is what is meant by Speaking Power to Truth.

furious_a said...

The only way to hurt him more is to laugh at him. He just might go nuts if that happens.

"The Presidency is not a journey of personal discovery" -- Sarah Palin

She (and her children) been paying for that zinger ever since.

mariner said...

furious_a,
"The Presidency is not a journey of personal discovery" -- Sarah Palin

She was right, too.

Obama hasn't discovered a thing about himself. The rest of us sure have.