Psaki’s Advice for Next Press Secretary: Don’t Let Reporters ‘Make You Seem Like You’re Satan Reincarnated’
White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki found herself in a “weird” situation during a live podcast taping: role-playing as a woman version of Fox News White House correspondent Peter Doocy.
Ms. Psaki was a guest Thursday night on a live episode of Pod Save America, an appearance that touched off controversy and gnashing of teeth when the podcast hosts asked about President Joe Biden’s rather raw commentary about Doocy.
But there was much more ground covered during the event, which ran more than 45 minutes, including the rumors and reports of Psaki’s departure for MSNBC.
While Psaki was characteristically cagey about the date and hour and manner of her exit from the White House, she gave a detailed and insightful response when asked to dispense advice to a potential successor:
MR. FAVREAU: Yeah. Hypothetically, if you were to leave. What kind of hypothetical advice would you give to your hypothetical successor?
MS. PSAKI: Oh, hypothetically, OK. A couple of things. One is that, I mean, I came into this job thinking this, but I think it’s true even more now. We don’t have to underestimate the intelligence of the American people. People are not stupid. We do not need to talk in a way that is like everybody’s in kindergarten. People pay attention. We need to make things accessible. That’s also true.
I believe the best people who are communicators or spokespeople are ones who are also deeply knowledgeable about the issues they’re going to talk about. It’s not about reading talking points. This is what I would say to any successor. It’s not about reading talking points. It’s, you’re not like a weather girl. No offense to weather girls. They’re great. They tell me the weather. But like, it’s it’s about being able to answer the ninth question, right? And being able to talk about things. And I would say, I know a number of my amazing team members are here, but I’m a little relentless at times because I want to know how to explain what a javelin, the weapon, is so that people can know what it is, right? You want to know how to explain, is COVID a problem? It’s not a problem. So I say that second thing.
The third thing which I have learned the hard way and this is the truth. If anybody ever hasn’t been in the briefing room, come to the briefing room, whatever, it’s small and there are reporters staring at you the entire time, even when they’re not asking you questions. Sometimes, and actually the ASL interpreter, like the sign language, American Sign Language Interpreter said this in a TV interview the other day. They’re very repetitive. These questions are very repetitive. They ask her the same question over and over again, and you have to remember you’re not at a dinner party or you’re not at a bar. Right? So you’re not just saying to your friend, “Listen, I’ve answered your question nine times,” right? You have to continue to provide the same context and information because in the age of social media and Twitter, otherwise even the best meaning and well-meaning reporters will take one thing you said and make you seem like you’re Satan reincarnated.
MR. FAVREAU: What?!?
MR. PFEIFFER: That kind of cynicism has no place here.
MR. PFEIFFER: I know there’s a lot, we can talk about at Twitter. All these things, but those would be my three pieces. And you know, the last thing I would say is the best thing you can do is know what the president’s thinking. I mean, that’s ultimately your job is to speak on his behalf, not on your behalf. You’re speaking for hi… on his behalf. What the administration thinks. If you don’t know, you don’t know, and you say you don’t know, then you call up someone who knows, and you go give them the answer. And it doesn’t have to be a gotcha situation.
Although there are likely many examples, Psaki has repeatedly singled out one exchange about sending Covid tests to all Americans as an instance in which she wished she had provided consistent context.
Watch above via Crooked Media.
