Washington Post writer Dana Milbank is no partisan Democrat-hater or friend of Republicans (remember his tacky stunt following Dick Cheney's 2006 hunting accident?) but he is merciless in his critique of yesterday's carefully scripted press conference by President Obama:
In his first daytime news conference yesterday, President Obama preempted "All My Children," "Days of Our Lives" and "The Young and the Restless." But the soap viewers shouldn't have been disappointed: The president had arranged some prepackaged entertainment for them.After the obligatory first question from the Associated Press, Obama treated the overflowing White House briefing room to a surprise. "I know Nico Pitney is here from the Huffington Post," he announced.
Obama knew this because White House aides had called Pitney the day before to invite him, and they had escorted him into the room. They told him the president was likely to call on him, with the understanding that he would ask a question about Iran that had been submitted online by an Iranian. "I know that there may actually be questions from people in Iran who are communicating through the Internet," Obama went on. "Do you have a question?"
[...]
The use of planted questioners is a no-no at presidential news conferences, because it sends a message to the world -- Iran included -- that the American press isn't as free as advertised. But yesterday wasn't so much a news conference as it was a taping of a new daytime drama, "The Obama Show." Missed yesterday's show? Don't worry: On Wednesday, ABC News will be broadcasting "Good Morning America" from the South Lawn (guest stars: the president and first lady), "World News Tonight" from the Blue Room, and a prime-time feature with Obama from the East Room.
... During the eight years of the Bush administration, liberal outlets such as the Huffington Post often accused the White House of planting questioners in news conferences to ask preplanned questions. But here was Obama fielding a preplanned question asked by a planted questioner -- from the Huffington Post.
Pitney said the White House, though not aware of the question's wording, asked him to come up with a question about Iran proposed by an Iranian. And, as it turned out, he was not the only prearranged questioner at yesterday's show. Later, Obama passed over the usual suspects to call on Macarena Vidal of the Spanish-language EFE news agency. The White House called Vidal in advance to see whether she was coming and arranged for her to sit in a seat usually assigned to a financial trade publication. She asked about Chile and Colombia.
A couple of more questions and Obama called it a day. "Mr. President!" yelled Mike Allen of Politico. "May I ask about Afghanistan? No questions about Iraq or Afghanistan?"
Sorry: Those weren't prearranged.
Ouch.
It's worth remembering that when liberals caught even so much as a whiff of staging in a Bush Administration press conference, the gloves came off and things got bloody in a hurry. The full-throttle effort to smear Jeff Gannon (including viciously outing him as a homosexual, parading his former life as a gay escort, and subsequently destroying his career as a writer and journalist) for asking a friendly question at a 2005 Bush press conference stands as a sobering example of what happens when the natural, deeply ingrained, adversarial nature of mainstream press/Republican White House relations is challenged by an "outsider."
But these days, with Democrats firmly in control, carefully screened and planted questions seem to be the norm at Democrat-orchestrated political events. During the 2008 election, the starry-eyed Obama love expressed by the mainstream press caused many people (including myself) to wonder if the press had, by and large, simply given up its traditional role of "comforting the afflicted and afflicting the comfortable." With the "good guys" finally in charge, the role of "adversary" suddenly seemed strangely unpatriotic to liberals.
I'm no fan of Dana Milbank, but it's nice to see someone step up and call the Democrats on their use of the mainstream press as nothing more than a PR and propaganda tool.
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Tags: Barack Obama, Democrats
Comments (22)
Hmmm...it's one thing when ... (Below threshold)1. Posted by Falze | June 24, 2009 9:57 AM | Score: 9 (9 votes cast)
Hmmm...it's one thing when Howard Kurtz goes after them for this sort of thing, but quite another when you get a Milbank wondering aloud about it.
Andrea Mitchell brought it up during the campaign, but how many fake news conferences are the press going to go to? And if they can't ask a question, they're going to realize they're out of a job. Suddenly they might regain interest in doing their job. Some of them, anyway. Maybe realize there's something to this Dick Durbin thing. And, hey, maybe there's a story or two about R. Allen Stanford and his 2.5:1 Dem:GOP giving ratio to hash over. Why, they might even interview Gerald Walpin instead of just printing White House talking points about him.
"Let me say something about the message management. He didn't have reporters with him, he didn't have a press pool, he didn't do a press conference," either in Afghanistan or Iraq, noted Mitchell on the air. Instead Obama manufactured "what some would call 'fake interviews,' because they are not interviews from a journalist," Mitchell went on.
1. Posted by Falze | June 24, 2009 9:57 AM |
Score: 9 (9 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 09:57
2. Posted by Adrian Browne | June 24, 2009 10:00 AM | Score: -25 (25 votes cast)
When Bush was president all the complaints were about how the media was thwarting his awesome communicatin' skills. Now we have the opposite and still the complaints. Why the 180 degree turn?
2. Posted by Adrian Browne | June 24, 2009 10:00 AM |
Score: -25 (25 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 10:00
3. Posted by D-Hoggs | June 24, 2009 10:04 AM | Score: 20 (20 votes cast)
so adrian, you see nothing wrong with all the planted questions then huh? And once more, Bush didn't rely solely on a telepromptor and scripted questions so enough with the bullshit that obama is some kind of great uhhhh, ummmmm, uhhhhh, orator.
3. Posted by D-Hoggs | June 24, 2009 10:04 AM |
Score: 20 (20 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 10:04
4. Posted by Falze | June 24, 2009 10:07 AM | Score: 18 (18 votes cast)
all the complaints were about how the media was thwarting his awesome communicatin' skills
Gosh, I'd love to see where someone made this argument, troll. Then I'll want to see where ALL the complaints were about that.
Put up or shut up. And stay on topic while you're at it.
4. Posted by Falze | June 24, 2009 10:07 AM |
Score: 18 (18 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 10:07
5. Posted by Hank | June 24, 2009 10:24 AM | Score: 17 (17 votes cast)
This really is amazing.
With a press corp that is really nothing more than a cheering section for Obama, he still has to manage/pre-arrange some questions?
As sycophantic as the MSM is, even they may end up noticing when they've been thrown under the bus by Obama. (quite the crowd there).
5. Posted by Hank | June 24, 2009 10:24 AM |
Score: 17 (17 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 10:24
6. Posted by bill-tb | June 24, 2009 10:29 AM | Score: 15 (15 votes cast)
The Obama Show looks an awful lot like The Hugo Chavez Show. Watch the Hugo Chavez show on Frontline to see your future.
Yep, czars and all ...
6. Posted by bill-tb | June 24, 2009 10:29 AM |
Score: 15 (15 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 10:29
7. Posted by jp2 | June 24, 2009 10:40 AM | Score: -17 (19 votes cast)
The "planted" question was by far the most difficult question he received. Even Fox's attempt was lame in comparison. Helen Thomas also asked him a pretty tough question which he answered shamelessly.
7. Posted by jp2 | June 24, 2009 10:40 AM |
Score: -17 (19 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 10:40
8. Posted by GarandFan | June 24, 2009 10:55 AM | Score: 13 (13 votes cast)
"The "planted" question was by far the most difficult question he received."
And he didn't answer it.
I think all future pressers should be called "The Obama Show". At least people would be put on notice that it's just for entertainment.
8. Posted by GarandFan | June 24, 2009 10:55 AM |
Score: 13 (13 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 10:55
9. Posted by Eric | June 24, 2009 11:02 AM | Score: 15 (15 votes cast)
WTF? It's a planted question, it doesn't matter how easy or difficult the question is when you already know the question and can have a prepared answer.
9. Posted by Eric | June 24, 2009 11:02 AM |
Score: 15 (15 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 11:02
10. Posted by OregonMuse | June 24, 2009 11:29 AM | Score: 12 (12 votes cast)
Hey, remember when the left shat their pants with indignation when a journalist of questionable credentials, Jeff Gannon, was caught feeding softball questions to President Bush?
Good times, good times.
10. Posted by OregonMuse | June 24, 2009 11:29 AM |
Score: 12 (12 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 11:29
11. Posted by arcman
| June 24, 2009 11:53 AM | Score: 14 (14 votes cast)
I have yet to see a news conference where he hasn't had the questions pre-planned. What bothers me most is the fact that if the press had done their job, we would not have had a "President Obama". No other candidate, Democrat or Republican, would have ever gotten away with spending millions to hide his college records; his Illinois state senate records, his past drug use (per his own admission), his lack of friends from high school and college, his lack of any kind of a paper trail, and, yes, even the birth certificate. His election was a joke, and we are now all paying for it.
11. Posted by arcman
| June 24, 2009 11:53 AM |
Score: 14 (14 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 11:53
12. Posted by Oyster | June 24, 2009 12:36 PM | Score: 10 (12 votes cast)
"When Bush was president all the complaints were about how the media was thwarting his awesome communicatin' skills."
What the hell are you talking about?
12. Posted by Oyster | June 24, 2009 12:36 PM |
Score: 10 (12 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 12:36
13. Posted by Codekeyguy
| June 24, 2009 1:09 PM | Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
I await a "not favored" reporter filing for "divorce". It will be nasty.
And if any "real" reporters are sill in the room, I hope a vestage of a spine surfaces.
13. Posted by Codekeyguy
| June 24, 2009 1:09 PM |
Score: 6 (6 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 13:09
14. Posted by Wordygirl | June 24, 2009 1:56 PM | Score: 8 (8 votes cast)
I read Milbank's Washington Post column online. The comments to the Post are extremely interesting. The left have no problem eating their own when it comes to criticizing The One. And the only excuse they can seem to muster is that "Bush did it".
14. Posted by Wordygirl | June 24, 2009 1:56 PM |
Score: 8 (8 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 13:56
15. Posted by Jim | June 24, 2009 2:42 PM | Score: 2 (2 votes cast)
The question was a cool concept- to actually hear the concerns of an Iranian, but the fact that it seemed (and was) so pre-meditated was painful to watch. Althought it might not have been a true pre-planned thing because Obama, quite frankly, didn't handle it that well.
http://www.newsy.com/videos/statecraft_vs_stagecraft
15. Posted by Jim | June 24, 2009 2:42 PM |
Score: 2 (2 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 14:42
16. Posted by jp2 | June 24, 2009 3:45 PM | Score: -8 (12 votes cast)
One other thing -
How is accurately describing Jeff Guckert's career as a gay whore smearing? He took money. For sex. With dudes. Pointing that out is not "smearing."
16. Posted by jp2 | June 24, 2009 3:45 PM |
Score: -8 (12 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 15:45
17. Posted by maggie | June 24, 2009 4:27 PM | Score: 2 (6 votes cast)
jp2,
Bag up your shiny objects, get back on the
topic of this thread.
17. Posted by maggie | June 24, 2009 4:27 PM |
Score: 2 (6 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 16:27
18. Posted by JLawson | June 24, 2009 4:28 PM | Score: 6 (8 votes cast)
JP2 - you a homophobe or something?
Near as I can tell, it was a victimless 'crime', that had pretty much nothing to do with his job.
Are you grabbing all the outrage again, you greedy bastard?
18. Posted by JLawson | June 24, 2009 4:28 PM |
Score: 6 (8 votes cast)
Posted on June 24, 2009 16:28
19. Posted by Trajan | June 25, 2009 1:43 AM | Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
The D.C. Metroliner crash is a metaphor for
Obama's rush-rush policies in his power-grab.
Give this guy an inch and he's pocketing
the mile. He's got his pedal to the metal
and a one-track mind....a very focused, one
track mind. And a lot of sycophants greasing
the rails. Could be a lot of "unavoidable"
accidents with this guy at the controls.
19. Posted by Trajan | June 25, 2009 1:43 AM |
Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
Posted on June 25, 2009 01:43
20. Posted by LaMedusa | June 25, 2009 2:03 PM | Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
It's a metaphor for a lot of things. Think, "Snakes on a Train".
20. Posted by LaMedusa | June 25, 2009 2:03 PM |
Score: 1 (1 votes cast)
Posted on June 25, 2009 14:03
21. Posted by Flu-Bird | June 25, 2009 3:58 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
I saw that one time demacratic canadate ADLEE STEVENSON once prempted I LOVE LUCY fora commencment speech and that was probibly one of the reasons he lost to ike
21. Posted by Flu-Bird | June 25, 2009 3:58 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 25, 2009 15:58
22. Posted by Oyster | June 26, 2009 7:18 PM | Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Flu-bird, that was probably the most insightful comments you've ever made here.
22. Posted by Oyster | June 26, 2009 7:18 PM |
Score: 0 (0 votes cast)
Posted on June 26, 2009 19:18