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Miss Modular Miss Modular is offline
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Old Mar 17th, 2003, 06:05 PM        The White House controls the press, says Journalist
http://www.poynter.org/forum/default...g=2#whitehouse

It's time to change the rules of WH reporting
3/13/2003 2:41:44 PM
Posted By: Jim Romenesko

From JONATHAN WEISMAN, Economics Writer, Washington Post:
In the wake of Seymour Hersh's open statements about the way the White House treats the press, I feel compelled to relate a personal story that illustrates how both the White House and the press have allowed manipulation of the printed word in Washington to get out of hand. This is a bit of a confession as well as an appeal to the White House and my fellow reporters to rethink the way journalism is practiced these days.

Recently, I was working on a profile of the now-departed chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisers, R. Glenn Hubbard. I dutifully went through the White House press office to talk to an administration economist about Hubbard's tenure, and a press office aide helpfully got me in touch with just the person I wanted. The catch was this: The interview would be off the record. Any quotes I wanted to put into the newspaper would have to be e-mailed to the press office. If approved, the quotation could be attributed to a White House official. (This has become fairly standard practice.)

Since the profile focused on Hubbard's efforts to translate relatively arcane macroeconomic theory into public policy, the quote I wanted referenced the president's effort to end the double taxation of dividends: "This is probably the most academic proposal ever to come out of an administration." The press office said it was fine, but the official wanted a little change. Instead, the quote was to read, "This is probably the purest, most far reaching economic proposal ever to come out of an administration." I protested that the point of the quote was the word "academic," so the quote was again amended to state, "This is probably the purest, most academic, most far reaching economic proposal ever to come out of an administration."

What appeared in the Washington Post was, "This is probably the purest, most academic ... economic proposal ever to come out of an administration." What followed was an angry denunciation by the White House press official, telling me I had broken my word and violated journalistic ethics.

I had, of course, violated journalistic ethics, by placing into quotation marks a phrase that was never uttered by the source, ellipses or no ellipses. I had also played ball with the White House using rules that neither I nor any other reporter should be assenting to. I think it is time for all of us to reconsider the way we cover the White House. If administration officials want to speak off the record, they are off the record. If they are on background as an administration official, I suppose that's the best we can expect. But the notion that reporters are routinely submitting quotations for approval, and allowing those quotes to be manipulated to get that approval, strikes me as a step beyond business as usual.
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The_Rorschach The_Rorschach is offline
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Old Mar 17th, 2003, 06:13 PM       
Washington Post eh?


Doesn't surprise me. As to the 'journalists,' they are lazy lapdogs and have been for some time. I have trouble discerning many of the headlining stories from the editorials. For quite a few decades the media was been more concerned with apparances than depth. Who, really, is surprised by any of this.
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Miss Modular Miss Modular is offline
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Old Mar 17th, 2003, 06:22 PM       
Didn't say I was, but I think it pretty much validates an ongoing suspicion.
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Old Mar 18th, 2003, 06:07 AM       
Wait, if the White House controls the media, what do the Jews control? Or does the White House control the Jews?
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sspadowsky sspadowsky is offline
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Old Mar 18th, 2003, 11:07 AM       
Duh. Why do you think Ari Fleischer is the one doing most of the afternoon press conferences?

THE JEWS ARE RUNNING THE WHITE HOUSE! 8-)
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Last edited by sspadowsky : Apr 18th, 2011 at 05:33 AM.
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El Blanco El Blanco is offline
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Old Mar 18th, 2003, 01:26 PM       
Fucking retards. Its obviously the Lizard men in conjunction with the Illuminati. Sheesh, its so obvious.
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theapportioner theapportioner is offline
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Old Mar 19th, 2003, 08:26 PM       
Anyone read Eric Alterman's new book?
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