The recent appointment of former Time magazine reporter Jay Carney as White House Press Secretary has already spawned an effort to discredit Carney, and his former colleagues, by right-wing media watchdog Newsbusters. The right’s answer to Media Matters has released what it calls a “Media Bias Dossier” on Carney, but at eight quotes in a twenty-year career, it’s pretty thin gruel. It might also surprise Newsbusters to know that libeeral watchdog Media Matters has an even thicker “dossier” on Carney, and that Redstate’s Erick Erickson is among Carney’s biggest fans.

As former Time magazine reporter Jay Carney emerges from the Office of the Vice President into the glaring spotlight of White House Press Secretary, there will undoubtedly be an effort to capitalize on the right’s contempt for mainstream journalism by demonizing Carney, and his former colleagues, in one fell swoop.

Right-wing radio host Rush Limbaugh provided the blueprint for this effort back in 2006, when he offhandedly slammed Carney and his wife, ABC News National Correspondent Claire Shipman, as “slave-owner and husband.” (h/t Media Matters)

The announcement of Jay Carney as successor to White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs has ended weeks of speculation, but raises questions about how Carney will take to his new post, and it to him. In exclusive comments to Mediaite, members of the White House Press Corps expressed optimism about Carney’s tenure, and identified possible challenges for the new Press Secretary, including his own status as a former journalist, his relative distance from the Obama administration’s inner circle, and his boyish good looks.

The Obama White House sent Robert Gibbs to brief reporters on the evolving situation in Egypt, but at least one member of the White House press corps was curious why President Obama himself hadn’t come to face the cameras. “Why is the president not standing where you’re standing right now,” asked CBS’ Chip Reid. Gibbs, who spent most of the briefing sticking to a very narrow set of talking points, responded that the White House–and the president–were “monitoring a very fluid situation.”

Calling the current upheaval in Egypt “a very fluid situation,” White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs clarified that President Obama has not been in touch with embattled Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak. When asked if the WH supports the current leader, Gibbs said “this is not about picking a person or picking a people of a country,” concluding with having deep concern “over the images and events that we see” in Egypt today.

After several weeks of speculation that began with current White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs’ announcement that he is leaving the White House in February, a successor to Gibbs has finally been named. According to several news sources, including ABC News’ Jake Tapper, White House sources confirm that the new Press Secretary will be Vice President [...]

During Tuesday night’s State of the Union address, Rep. Paul Broun (R-GA 10) became the closest thing to a “You lie!” moment, tweeting during the address “Mr. President, you don’t believe in the Constitution. You believe in socialism.” Shortly thereafter, I asked White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs if he had a reaction to the [...]

At Monday’s White House briefing, The Blade‘s Chris Johnson asked Gibbs about a 1996 questionnaire that indicated Obama’s support for same-sex marriage, and I followed up by asking if the President was any closer to revealing his “evolved” personal beliefs on the subject. Gibbs pointed to previous remarks by the President, and said it’s an issue that he “thinks a lot about,” but there are no immediate plans for him to address the issue.

On Sunday, I reported that House Majority Leader Eric Cantor refused to reject Birther “crazy talk” on Meet the Press. At Monday’s White house briefing, I asked Press Secretary Robert Gibbs if he thought that Republican leaders had a duty to put the kibosh on Birther talk, and whether the President would do the same were the positions reversed. Gibbs responded that “rational people” don’t question the President’s citizenship, and pointed to Obama’s own record regarding his opponent’s status.

Since White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs announced his imminent (early February) departure from the White House, speculation about his replacement has centered around Gibbs deputies Bill Burton and Josh Earnest, and Vice President Biden’s Press Secretary, Jay Carney. After today’s White House briefing, I tried to get a sense of where things stand by [...]

At Tuesday’s White House briefing, Robert Gibbs fielded several questions about the status of the repeal of DOMA (The Defense of Marriage Act), which he said, “given the current makeup of the Congress,” would be “inordinately challenging.”

Given President Obama’s recent remarks about his “evolving” opinion on same-sex marriage, and the fact that he used last year’s State of the Union address to promise the repeal of DADT, I asked Gibbs if the President might address the DOMA repeal, and his personal views on gay marriage, at this year’s SOTU.

White House spokesperson Robert Gibbs, speaking about this weekend’s shooting in Arizona, responded to one Russian reporter’s assertion that the shooting was somehow “American” – as in a wholly American demonstration of one practicing his freedom to… kill… people? We’re not entirely sure what the reporter’s thought process was.

While many people have given President Obama’s speech at last night’s memorial high marks, some have been angered, not so much for what Obama said, but for how his words impacted the audience. According to some, Obama gave a speech people enjoyed just too much for a solemn, serious event. The key phrase being tossed around has been that the atmosphere was too much like a “pep rally.” It was this critique that CBS’ Mark Knoller asked Robert Gibbs about.

Fox News’ Megyn Kelly moderated a debate today, with radio host Jason Lewis and Democratic strategist Bernard Whitman, over President Obama’s innocuous remark about Robert Gibbs’ “relatively modest pay,” and the “outrage” it has spawned.

On Wednesday night’s Countdown, host Keith Olbermann made a somewhat cryptic reference to the “Professional Left” flap, saying that he knew “from conversations at the time” that the kerfuffle was caused by “a combination of not setting ground rules with some reporters, and a lot of misunderstandings and frustrations.” He didn’t go into detail, possibly because conversations were off the record, so I reached out to the reporter who conducted the interview, The Hill‘s Sam Youngman.

With the announcement Wednesday morning that White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs will soon be moving on to a role outside the White House, the next big question is: Who will succeed him? There have been a few names kicked around, but the smart money is on Deputy Press Secretary Bill Burton, and with the [...]

On the heels of this morning’s announcement that he will be leaving the White House, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs fielded many questions regarding his future, and his possible successor. Gibbs played it characteristically close to the vest, divulging very little in the way of new information, but he spoke about his plans, and at one point, seemed poised to get a little misty when talking about the relationships he has formed during his tenure.

After months of speculation that mainly centered around a move into a senior advisory position within the Obama administration, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs confirmed that he will be stepping down as press secretary in February. But instead of a senior administration post, Gibbs is leaving the White House altogether, a development that has only recently been rumored. No replacement for Gibbs has been named, but Deputy Press Secretary Bill Burton is the heavy favorite.

As 2010 draws to a close, it’s time to take stock of the year that was, and since we in the White House press corps might not have him around much longer, I think it’s important to look back on Year Two of Press Secretary Robert Gibbs‘ tenure. While it was a bumpy year for the Obama administration, Gibbs was out there every day, taking the heat and giving some back. As a fourth-row witness to Gibbs’ tumultuous year, here are my selections for the Top Ten Robert Gibbs Moments of 2010.

Despite a rough year for the Obama administration, Press Secretary Robert Gibbs has managed to keep it light in the daily White House briefings, according to Mediaite’s research. Sure, we’ve kidded Politico in the past for its laughter-measuring ways, but why should that stop us from doing the exact same thing? Now when someone says of Robert Gibbs, “That guy is a million laughs,” you can authoritatively respond, “Actually, he’s 987 laughs. This year.”

This morning on CNN‘s State of The Union, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs told Candy Crowley that he was pleased with the tax compromise, especially since he admits if the administration had waited until January, they probably would “not gotten half of what we got.” Also Gibbs was pleased that Republicans realized they can no longer be the party of simply saying no:

During White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs’ weekly Twitter Q&A, the issue of the President’s struggle to quit smoking came up, and Gibbs confirmed an observation that he made earlier in the month that he had not “seen or witnessed evidence of any smoking in probably nine months.”

Responding to a question from @CJStatler, Gibbs declared, unequivocally, that “POTUS hasnt’ had a cigarette in about 9 months.”

During his innovative weekly Twitter Q&A, White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs proved himself the better of scores of substitute homeroom teachers. Fielding a question from a Twitter user who calls himself “Dr. Mike Hunt” (real name James Hardy), Gibbs didn’t miss a beat when identifying the admitted prankster as “Dr. Mike.”

So, Hunt colleagues Richard Hertz, Haywood D’JaBlowme, and Isadore Percy Frehley can take heart that their titter-inducing monikers will never preclude them from getting a Twitter-induced answer from Gibbs. Video after the jump.

There’s been a lot of talk about comedians being too involved in politics recently and it’s all seemed rather silly. Comedians and satirists have been an essential part of running a government since the first king decided he wanted a guy in a goofy hat to hang out in his throne room. However this story, about Robert Gibbs praising Jon Stewart is sure to get a lot of tongues wagging. And it should. Just not in the way it surely will.

Fox News contributor Karl Rove offered some clearly unsolicited advice to President Obama regarding who the President should hire to potentially replace Press Secretary Robert Gibbs. According to Rove, “Gibbs has signaled that he would like to replace David Axelrod [Obama's Senior Adviser]” and just in case Obama was listening, Rove publicly issued a letter of recommendation for a new candidate who would best serve the President: Jay Carney, Director of Communications to Vice President Joe Biden. Considering the source, that surely kills Carney’s chances at a promotion anytime soon.