The New York Times piled on the criticism of the Biden White House for dodging press interviews, saying it sets a “dangerous precedent.”
In a statement on Thursday, the Times called it “troubling” that Biden “has so actively and effectively avoided questions from independent journalists during his term.” The statement read:
[I]n meetings with Vice President Harris and other administration officials, the publisher of The Times focused instead on a higher principle: That systematically avoiding interviews and questions from major news organizations doesn’t just undermine an important norm, it also establishes a dangerous precedent that future presidents can use to avoid scrutiny and accountability.
That is why Mr. Sulzberger has repeatedly urged the White House to have the president sit down with The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Reuters, CNN and other major independent news organizations that millions of Americans rely on to understand their government.
Reporters with the New York Times also disputed a recent report from POLITICO saying that publisher A.G. Sulzberger said in a private comment that “only an interview with a paper like the Times can verify that the 81-year-old Biden is still fit to hold the presidency.”
“I’ve never heard AG say anything like that nor anyone else at the @nytimes,” Peter Baker, chief White House correspondent at the Times, wrote on X. “It’s just not the way it works. AG wants us to cover this president — and every president — as fully, fairly and aggressively as we can because that’s our role. That’s true regardless of whether we get an interview. AG takes our responsibility very seriously and is a complete straight shooter.”
Agreed. I’ve never heard AG say anything like that nor anyone else at the @nytimes. It’s just not the way it works. AG wants us to cover this president — and every president — as fully, fairly and aggressively as we can because that’s our role. That’s true regardless of whether… https://t.co/4eY1T5kWrb
— Peter Baker (@peterbakernyt) April 25, 2024
The president has earned a reputation for ghosting the White House press corp, routinely yielding the floor to press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre while being relatively absent. His press dodging became so problematic that even the Washington Post called him out on it in an article last year.
“In his first two-and-a-half years as president, Biden has held fewer news conferences than his predecessors. He has given fewer interviews to major news organizations, despite his promise to restore traditional press relations after the Trump era,” it noted
“At the same time, the White House is contacting an array of online influencers, social media personalities, TikTok stars and other nontraditional figures to spread its message, creating an alternative communication network that is different from previous presidencies,” it added.
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