When the White House took control of the so -called “press pool” that accompanies US President, journalists feared that the Trump government would use this power to punish media vehicles. First was the Associated Press; Now it’s the Wall Street Journal.
On Monday (21), the White House announced that it will remove the newspaper from one of the coveted seats on the US President Trump’s trip to Scotland.
Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said the change was made “due to the false and defamatory conduct of the Wall Street Journal”, in reference to the newspaper’s recent report on Trump and Jeffrey Epstein.
The article, published on July 17, describes one by its 50th anniversary in 2003 – including a note with the name of Trump and the design of a naked woman.
The American leader filed a lawsuit the next day, alleging defamation, “because no authentic letter or drawing exists.”
Now, the White House is using a tool at its disposal, control over Trump access, to retaliate against the newspaper belonging to Rupert Murdoch.
A reporter for Journalwho did not participate in the report on Epstein’s birthday letter, was scheduled to join the press pool during the president’s trip to the Golf Fields in Scotland.
Until the beginning of this year, the designations for the pool were made by the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA), an independent group that represents journalists covering the government.
However, in February, Leavitt excluded the group and took control of the pool, giving the administration a new form of influence.
Pool is a small group of journalists who travel with the president and cover events on behalf of the entire press. This rotation is critical because many presidential commitments, such as photo shoot at the Oval Hall or interviews aboard Air Force One, occur in limited space environments.
Dispute for press access
Leavitt excluded the Association of Correspondents in the midst of the dispute with AP because of the Mexican Gulf nomenclature, which Trump ordered the US government to call it.
AP, being a global news agency, continues to refer to the region as, although it mentions the order of Trump.
This began one months of press access. “As the Court of Appeals confirmed, the Wall Street Journal or any other press vehicle does not have guaranteed access to cover President Trump in the Oval Hall aboard Air Force One or his private work spaces,” Leavitt said.
“Thirteen diverse vehicles will participate in the press pool to cover the president’s trip to Scotland,” she added, before claiming that WSJ will not be one of them.
The White House did not respond immediately to the question of which vehicle will replace the WSJ.
A newspaper spokesman refused to comment on the act of retaliation. But in response to questions about the process last week, he said: “We fully trust in the rigor and accuracy of our report and we will vigorously defend any legal action.”
“The White House attempt to punish a media vehicle whose coverage she disapproves is deeply worrying and challenges the first amendment,” said Weijia Jiang, president of the White House Correspondents Association in a statement.
Press freedom defense organizations also quickly condemned the White House decision.
“It’s unconstitutional, not to say revenge and too sensitive, that a president revokes access to punish a vehicle by publishing a report he tried to drown out,” said Set Stern, director of advocacy at Freedom of the Press Foundation.
