White House Correspondents Insider

Behind the scenes of the most powerful city in the world — Washington, D.C. — and those who cover it.

CNN’s Alisyn Camerota Book Party at Newseum

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Washington’s Bad Ass media women hosted a book party to celebrate one of their own, CNN Anchor Alisyn Camerota. Dana Bash, Juleanna Glover, Ana Navarro, Daniella Landau, Megan Murphy, Hilary Rosen and Tammy Haddad brought together colleagues and friends to celebrate the publication of her novel, Amanda Wakes Up, on July 20th at the Newseum. It was a fitting place because Ms. Camerota is donating all the proceeds of the book to the Committee to Protect Journalists.

Ms. Camerota is a veteran of ABC News and Fox News and has been hitting new ratings heights this year as co-host of CNN’s “New Day” with co-host Chris Cuomo. Guests included Chris Coons (D-Del.) and his son, Michael,  Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.), Valerie Jarrett, Chris Cillizza, Fox News host Steve Hilton, Carol Melton, Tom Forrest, Carl Hulse, Katie Hinson, Rachel Pearson, Rob Flynn, Robin Goldman, Gloria Borger, Victoria Espinel, David Chalian, Sally Flynn, David Gelles, Betsy Klein, Kevin Cirilli, Ashley Killough, Laura Jarrett, Craig Gordon, Jeff Zeleny, Robert Draper and Kirsten Powers, Kate Bennett, Katie Hinman, Lauren Pratapas, and Jackie Kucinich.

Newseum Alisyn Camerota Book Party July 20, 2017

The book has just been released and is available on Amazon. https://www.amazon.com/Amanda-Wakes-Up-Alisyn-Camerota/dp/0399563997

Reports: Attorney General Jeff Sessions to Announce Criminal Investigations of Intelligence Leaks

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By U.S. Customs and Border Protection (160120-H-NI589-0103) [Public domain], via Wikimedia Commons

Unnamed officials are saying that Attorney General Jeff Sessions will announce in the upcoming few days a number of criminal leak investigations based on news reports containing sensitive intelligence information.

During an interview on Wednesday morning’s “Fox & Friends” program, White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci confirmed plans exist to launch the probe.

“I think he has got a plan that he has put together and at some point, I don’t know if it will be today, tomorrow or next week, he will announce that plan,” he said on the program.

Sessions’ actions come amid a days-long public admonishment of the attorney general by President Donald Trump, primarily on Twitter and in various interviews.  The president has strongly suggested that Sessions will not remain in his cabinet for much longer, but the attorney general has refused to resign his position.

Spicer Resigns as White House Press Secretary

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Daniel Lippman, Tammy Haddad, Sean Spicer. Photo courtesy of Haddad Media.

Sean Spicer has resigned as White House press secretary, following President Donald Trump’s appointment of Wall Street financier Anthony Scaramucci as communications director.

According to a report in the New York Times, the president asked Spicer to remain on as press secretary, but Spicer told Trump he believed hiring Scaramucci was a major mistake.

Scaramucci Expected To Be Named White House Communications Director

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SkyBridge Capital founder Anthony Scaramucci speaks at the 2016 SkyBridge Alternatives “SALT” Conference at the Bellagio Resort & Casino in Las Vegas. Photo courtesy Wikipedia.

Multiple news agencies are reporting Friday morning that President Donald Trump has selected his close friend and ally, Wall Street financier Anthony Scaramucci, to be the new White House communications director.

The director position has been vacant since May, when Mike Dubke resigned after only three months on the job. Since then, press secretary Sean Spicer has assumed most of the responsibilities of this position. NBC News and Axios both report that sources say Spicer is expected to stay on as press secretary.

Scaramucci is a former Goldman Sachs banker and was a member of Trump’s transition team. He is a major Republican donor, having held fundraisers for Scott Walker and Jeb Bush during the 2016 presidential primary, and supported Trump in the general election last year. Known as “Mooch” to his friends, he is a regular guest on Fox News and longtime friend of Sean Hannity.

Survey Finds Republicans Trust Trump, Democrats Trust CNN

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Photo courtesy Pixabay.

A new survey released by SurveyMonkey suggests that 89% of Republicans see President Donald Trump as more trustworthy as CNN, while 91% of Democrats hold the opposite opinion.  Independent voters are more split, with 55% choosing CNN, compared to the 40% that trust Trump more.

While the survey also shows that 64% of all adults disapprove of Trump’s use of Twitter, Jon Cohen, senior vice president of survey research at SurveyMonkey, said that:

“A red flag for Democrats continues to be a perception that Trump is isolating himself from the GOP base with his tweets.  Not only do most Republicans approve of his use of Twitter, but asked to describe those tweets, the No. 1 mention among the GOP is ‘truthful,’ with ‘entertaining’ in second place.”

Survey results also noted a danger for Republicans remaining content ignoring media outlets not frequented by their base.  Fully one-third of Republican respondents said they only get their news from Fox News.  Cohen explained further that:

“…the biggest danger for Republicans is that they grow content with firing up the base: Fully three-quarters of pure independents (those that don’t lean one way or the other) disapprove of Trump’s tweeting, and their top three descriptions for it are ‘undignified,’ ‘mean,’ and ‘dishonest.’”

SurveyMonkey conducted their poll online between June 29 and July 3, with a margin of error of +/- 2.5 percent.  4,965 adults participated in the survey.

Conservative Media Outlets Get Seats in White House Briefing Room

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James S. Brady Press Briefing Room. Photo courtesy White House.

The seating chart in the White House briefing room has been updated, with changes including adding conservative media outlets Newsmax and One America News Network (OAN).

In an email to members, White House Correspondents Association president Jeff Mason announced that

“…the board considered multiple criteria during this decision-making process, including regular briefing attendance and commitment to the White House beat.  We also looked at news outlets’ audiences, both in terms of reach and in terms of preserving (or in some cases adding) diversity in the briefing room. We took stock of the changing landscape of our industry. Weighing these and other factors, we worked through what is always a difficult process affecting news outlets, colleagues and friends.”

Newsmax will now have its own seat in the center of the sixth row.  Correspondent John Gizzi has been present at most briefings and called upon frequently.   OAN will now share a seat with the BBC in the seventh row, as former seat-mate The Boston Globe shifts over to now join CQ Roll Call in their chair.

Other changes in the seating chart include a swap between AP Radio and USA Today.  USA Today will now be in the second row, with AP Radio taking the seat in the third row.  MSNBC and the foreign pool will trade places in the fourth row, while Christian Science Monitor moves up a row to share a seat in the fifth row with the New York Post, freeing up a seat for The Daily Mail.

The White House Correspondents’ Association, not the White House itself, determines the seating chart in the briefing room.

Press Invited, Disinvited From First Trump Re-Election Fundraiser

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Old Post Office Pavilion in Washington, D.C. in 2012, the site of the Trump Hotel. Photo courtesy of Wikipedia.

Only hours of announcing the media would be permitted to cover President Donald Trump’s first fundraiser for his re-election campaign in 2020, the White House reversed itself and closed the event to the media.

Deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders emailed reporters stating that “unfortunately there was some confusion with the [Republican National Committee] and due to the logistical challenges bringing in the press at this late moment is not going to be possible.”
The event was originally listed as closed press, but Sanders announced after inquiries from reporters that a small press pool would be allowed to cover the President’s remarks.

Within two hours, the event was again closed to press. There was no explanation from the White House on the reversal, nor an explanation of what logistical challenges were present in hosting the media.

Former President Barack Obama had allowed members of the media to cover his remarks during fundraisers for himself or other candidates, although cameras were generally banned. In some cases, Obama would hold fundraising events entirely off limits to the press. In those situations, he was not delivering formal remarks, but instead taking questions from donors. These discussions with donors were always closed to reporters.

Former President George W. Bush also allowed the media to cover portions of his first re-election fundraiser.

White House Publicly Criticizes CNN as “Fake News,” Promotes Undercover Video While Admitting Questionable Accuracy

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CNN Headquarters in Atlanta. Photo courtesy Pixabay.

White House deputy press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders Tuesday criticized CNN during a press briefing by saying the network’s alleged “disregard for facts” was “coming directly from the top.”

She also encouraged Americans to watch an undercover sting video produced by conservative James O’Keefe of Project Veritas that showed a CNN health unit producer questioning his network’s coverage of President Trump and Russia, suggesting other important stories have been buried by the news network.

Sanders stated during the press briefing that CNN’s actions are “a disgrace to all of media, all of journalism.”

Turning to the conservative video she promoted during the press hearing, Sanders admitted its accuracy was questionable.

“There’s a video circulating now, whether it’s accurate or not I don’t know, but I would encourage everyone in this room and frankly, everyone across the country, to take a look at it,” she stated.

Commenting on the undercover video, a CNN source said that “It’s silly, it’s been spun up as something it’s not.  [The producer is] a health unit producer in Atlanta. He has nothing to do with Washington politics or the investigative unit.”

CNN viewership has increased 10 percent year-over-year, according to Nielsen ratings from the second quarter released on Tuesday. The network is running in third place in the battle for cable news viewers, behind Fox News and MSNBC, while still ranking in the top ten cable channels overall.

“CNN just posted it’s most-watched second quarter in history,” the network’s communications department tweeted Tuesday in response to criticism from President Trump.

White House Correspondents’ Association Not Satisfied with Off-Camera Briefings

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James S. Brady Press Briefing Room. Photo courtesy White House.

Jeff Mason, president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, has announced the organization is “not satisfied” with the halt of daily, televised and recorded White House press briefings.

The White House press team has frequently cancelled or modified daily briefings, such as hosting off-camera sessions, forbidding the use of audio from the briefings, or cancelling them all together on certain days.

“The WHCA’s position on this issue is clear: we believe strongly that Americans should be able to watch and listen to senior government officials face questions from an independent news media, in keeping with the principles of the First Amendment and the need for transparency at the highest levels of government,” Mason said in an email to members of the association.

Members of the White House staff have publicly suggested changes in the daily briefings, and have already changed several aspects from the traditional setting. Changes such as “Skype Seats” where reporters and talk show hosts from across the country are able to ask questions, have been included in some briefings.

Press secretary Sean Spicer defended the administration’s changes and potential alterations to the format of the briefings. “We’re going to do what we can to communicate our message,” Spicer said at Tuesday’s briefing when asked about the frequency of press briefings. “The briefing is one aspect of what we do.”