2009: Tommy Christopher’s Year In Review

I started out this year wondering if the white-hot intensity of the 2008 campaign could be even partially sustained, a daunting question for a $10-a-post blogger trying to hustle his way into a career in journalism. I'm ending it as a White House reporter and political correspondent for two national online publications, well on my way to going from Pinocchio to real boy. Along the way, I learned some lessons and saw some things that I'd like to share with you. This isn't a roundup of the (Best/Worst/Most) of 2009, but rather a peek behind the curtain. My story starts in the middle of the year. It was mid-June, and I had just gone through a well-publicized breakup with Politics Daily. I was sitting in the front row of the White House press briefing room, tapping away on my laptop before the briefing, when Lynn Sweet approached me. Lynn had been my stablemate at Politics Daily, and we had only met for the first time a few weeks earlier. During that initial meeting, she talked to me for almost an hour, dispensing frequent "razz the new guy" barbs and journalistic lessons learned. I considered it a profound honor to have my chops busted by a legend like Lynn Sweet, whose work I had enjoyed so much during the campaign. If someone has to tell you "Go cover City Hall, kid," you could do a lot worse. Now, I was a guy without a job, in a field in which there were no jobs. If I had been in over my head with Politics Daily, I was positively drowning now. With no day job to fall back on, I was covering the White House for my own revenue-free website. It was an extraordinarily stupid leap of faith, one which I made shakily. Consequently, I was a little bit flummoxed when Lynn asked me "Who are you here with now, Tommy?" I stammered a little. "Well, um, DailyDose.us, I'm here covering the briefing for m-my own website." She seemed taken aback. "And they still let you in?" At the time, the remark stung, as I was certain she was trying to rub my nose in it. Upon further reflection, though, the sting was the result of self-doubt. Who could blame Lynn for being surprised? But as I sat there fuming, I did that thing where you think of what you should have said after the person has walked away. Politics Daily hadn't gotten me into the White House, I had gotten Politics Daily into the White House. Whatever I felt about the job I was doing, or whether I felt like I belonged, I was there. If I was a fool to stay, I'd have been a bigger fool not to. >>>NEXT: To the inauguration and beyond... As I said earlier, I started out the year cranking out 5 to 7 posts a day for Politics Daily, hoping to earn myself a real journalism job, but wondering if 2009 could come close to sustaining the interest generated by the 2008 campaign. At the time, I was about 90% certain that my trip to cover the inauguration would be a last hurrah, and people would cease to care about politics after that. The inauguration was a largely miserable, yet unforgettable, experience. Since I had very little in the way of inside connections, I don't have much insight into the way the media covered the event. I focused on the human, sometimes quirky, details that larger outlets would miss, but which I had no choice but to notice. Shortly after the inauguration, I applied for, and was granted, credentials to President Obama's first prime-time news conference. It would be my first trip to the White House. I could fill pages with my observations from that night, which is the main reason I started my own site, a place where I could immortalize every fascinating thought that popped into my head, and curse. Emblematic of my naivete´ was this photo. It's funny because it looks like the President and I are signaling each other, but notice how I'm the only idiot with his hand up? Halfway through, I still hadn't cottoned on to the fact that the President was working off of a list, and I had no chance of getting my question in. What I lacked in experience, though, I somewhat made up for in moxie. I did get my question in that night, but only by shanghaiing David Axelrod as he wrapped up an interview with Rachel Maddow. >>>NEXT: Bloggers in the press conference and White House briefings! Another blogger did get a question in at that press conference. The Huffington Post's Sam Stein rang in the new media's ascension to the grown-up's table by asking the President whether he would rule out investigating Bush administration officials. Obama's non-answer notwithstanding, it was a big moment for bloggers everywhere. Here's a little behind-the scenes footage I took before the press conference started. I'm frequently fascinated by the surreal quality of moments like these, the hushed anticipation mixed with workaday nonchalance. My experience with Axelrod, along with the kindness of fellow attendees like Helen Thomas and Ana Marie Cox, convinced me that covering the White House might be something I could manage, if not excel at. Even though it cost me more to go than I was being paid, I decided this would be a way to elevate my work, from somewhat clever re-reporting, to a fresh set of eyes on the White House. I wasn't a complete neophyte, having done dozens of press conferences during the campaign. As I noted on my blog, it wasn't quite the same thing: I’ll really have to be on my toes, though. This isn’t like those campaign conference calls, where you can zone out until they pick you. Anyway, I’m stoked but nervous. Getting what I want is a new thing for me. It can be a complicating factor. Melle Mel had a point when he said sometimes wanting is better than having. But, then, Buddha disagrees with Melle Mel, so who do I go with? What does Patrick Swayze’s character from “Road House” have to say about all this? The following week, I attended my first regular White House briefing. I didn't get a question in, but I did make a valuable friend, AURN's April Ryan. It's the 4th row seat next to April where I usually squat, until or unless somebody kicks me out of it. April's style is similar to that of my role model, Helen Thomas. In a word, she's a pit bull, peppering Gibbs with copious follow-ups. She's been a constant source of helpful tips and advice, and her welcoming smile has bucked me up more than once when I've felt out of place. Finding a seat at briefings is a bit like bingo for freelancers. See, if you're not in the first 4 rows, you may as well not exist, so seat choice is of paramount importance. They're all assigned, but probable a third or more of those assignees won't show up at a given briefing. The key is getting the right seat. Being kicked out of a seat is no big deal (unless it's by Savannah Guthrie, who's a little bit gruff about it), but if you lose your seat at the 11th hour, you're probably not getting another. >>>NEXT: My first question with Robert Gibbs... I didn't get a question in that first day (I did after the briefing), but I did the next time. It was the first in a series of questions in which I asked Robert Gibbs about something I had seen on TV, and to which he replied that he hadn't seen it. Since I was still too scared to ask a follow-up, I pretty much wasted those first few questions. The silver lining was that I was getting so many questions in at all, a usually rare feat for a freelance blogger. I'm pretty sure I know why, and I'm also going to keep it to myself. This is a business, remember? It was also about this time that I finally got to meet Ed Morrissey in person, at CPAC. I had always been half-convinced that Ed was pulling my leg when he said he was a fan of my writing, but the visit cemented what has become a great friendship. For the first time ever, here is video of that historic first meeting: CPAC also marked the start of my friendship with John Ziegler, who is probably one of the most misunderstood conservative figures around. In fact, I made a lot of friends there. Covering CPAC was an eye-opener for me. I met a lot of conservative heavy-hitters there, and not one of them tried to shoot/perform an exorcism/teach me banjo. It was another lesson in ignoring assumptions. Another highlight of this year was the start of my friendship with Meghan McCain. I was very impressed with her reaction to attacks from the right after she spoke out against Ann Coulter-style conservatism. She read one of my stories, and we began a long correspondence on Twitter. I think we share a desire for people on either side of the political spectrum to start treating each other like human beings. I tried my best to be low-key in the briefing room, letting relationships form organically. Looking back now, the people to whom I have gravitated, and vice-versa, are those who have a deeper connection to the job, who really care about the news. Some White House reporters have a sort of glib, detached view of the job, like a doctor who doesn't want to bring his day home with him. It's a fine approach, but lousy for conversation. Guys like Bill Press, David Corn, and CNS' Fred Lucas will show up early to a briefing, and shoot the breeze about the stories of the day, what's happening on the blogs, and their connectedness shows in their work. Fred and I often compare notes about which seat feels good that day, as we're both squatters. That connectedness also applies to my two other closest colleagues in the press corps, Jake Tapper and Major Garrett. Forming those friendships required me to let go of assumptions I had made about both of them. As a liberal blogger, I was wary of them both, and equally certain that neither would give me the time of day. Tapper had been singled out by Rush Limbaugh as his favorite White House reporter, and Garrett worked for the dreaded Fox News. But as I became more familiar with the mission of a White House reporter, I came to realize that these guys really got it. I had seen Tapper to say "hi" to, but the first real interaction we had was a civil, but spirited, argument about a story he had written. I was really impressed with his willingness to engage an opposing viewpoint, and even to consider its merit. Considering the schedule he keeps, I was also impressed with the time he took. Since then, he has been a valuable sounding board and confidante, and dammit, I'll say it, a mentor. He was also one of the few who offered encouragement during my weeks in the wilderness following my dismissal from Politics Daily. To those who resent his tough questioning of the Obama administration, I'd say to imagine what the Bush years might have looked like had Tapper been in the White house then. >>>NEXT: Meeting Major Garrett and Michael Jackson's death... I first met Major Garrett as he was leaving the White House one night. There was a campaign afoot to get him to use a South Park avatar (like Tapper and I did) on his Twitter account. At the behest of these tweeps, I told him about it, and he got a real kick out of it. He was still rather new to Twitter, and was still using a default icon. Again, my assumptions were confounded when I got to know him a little better. He's a guy who cares deeply about journalism, and whose status as a relative outsider I can relate to. His integrity and professionalism are above reproach. We bonded one night over drinks at the Off the Record bar, and as the name suggests, what was said there will stay there. I mention it because it was my first trip to Off the Record, a famous bar for DC journalists. I had heard of it before, but I always pictured it as some dingy basement watering hole, populated with trenchcoated reporter types with big index cards that say "Press" sticking out of their old-timey hats. Yeah, not so much. Off the Record is in the basement of the Hay Adams Hotel, a schmancier-than-thou inn that housed the Obama family for the buffer period between when the girls started school and when the Bush administration would permit them use of Blair House. It had the whole menu-without-prices thing going on. For purposes of this story, I will divulge that Garrett, thankfully, picked up the tab (without my knowledge). One of the more surreal moments this year was the death of Michael Jackson. I was at the White House, and it was just after the briefing. There were dozens of journalists gathered at the North Doors of the Palm Room, waiting to cover Marine One taking off or landing, I forget which. Someone loudly said "Michael Jackson was rushed to the hospital?," followed closely by news of his death, all of which we got from Twitter. As we waited, people watched Twitter, and let us know when the networks began to confirm (or catch up to) the news. Covering Marine One's departures and arrivals is a strange bit of business. I started doing it because it was there, and again, in hopes of capturing a cool picture. It also helps to have your own bank of President-y pictures to use in stories instead of using someone else's. Beyond that, it seemed like a monumental waste of time for all these camera crews to be out there every single time. Then it occurred to me that there might be some sort of macabre, what-if-it-crashes factor at work. Obviously, my time in the wilderness was short. Within weeks of leaving Politics Daily, I was back in the AOL fold with a freelancing gig for Asylum. Shortly thereafter, I was fortunate enough to score an introduction (via Lee Stranahan) to Rachel Sklar, who was staffing up a little outfit called Mediaite. She had heard about my Politics Daily troubles, and took a chance that I wasn't the handful of trouble I might have appeared to be. After a few months' tryout as a weekly columnist (the extra content was gratis gravy), I graduated to full-timer. >>>NEXT: Working for Mediaite... Working for Mediaite has been a wonderful, but challenging, experience. First of all, I don't think there's another White House reporter who works for a media reporting site. When there isn't a ready-made media story underway, this can lead to some interesting lines of questioning, to be sure. It has also forced me to become a sharper reporter, rather than coasting along on commentary and clever turns of phrase. On that score, I find encouragement in the fact that I've almost got nowhere to go but up. Whatever this year brings for me, I am certain it will be big for Mediaite. The brand carried clout from the minute it was launched, probably due to the involvement of Rachel, and that of Dan Abrams. Whereas before, it was through shameless and relentless self-promotion that I gained any recognition at all, now colleagues like Sam Stein know me because of my association with Mediaite. Press aides return some of my calls and emails instead of none. Lost Video Treasures - Here are some video clips from this year that I never got to use, for one reason or another. They're culled from about 300 clips that I took this year. This is the blessing and the curse of digital video, you can have your camera on pretty much all the time, but then you have to sort through it all. Rolling Thunder - One of the things we do at the White House after the briefings is to be on the lookout for the odd photo op. One afternoon, the word came down that the Rolling Thunder motorcycle club was coming to the West Wing for a visit. All of the still photographers, network cameramen, and I went outside to wait for their arrival. The scuttlebutt was that they were going to come rumbling down the drive in formation, then dismount right outside the West Wing to complete a grand entrance. We arranged ourselves accordingly, to capture the full spectacle, and we waited for, like, half an hour for them to show up. This is what we got: The Secret to a Salahi-Proof White House: Here's a clip I didn't even know I had. On my first trip into the White House, I got my first glimpse at the Uniformed Secret Service's heard-it-all-before-and-don't-care diligence when they turned away someone a lot more well-known than the White House Crashers. In case you missed it, Chuck had already been into the White House that day. See, that's how it's done. Not on the list? No soup for you! Bo Obama: Here's some video I shot of Bo. It was dark, so the footage is a little hard to make out, but I thought it was interesting that Bo was bumping into things and listing when he ran because the fur around his eyes was making it hard for him to see. Biden Mentors Young Men Here's a great clip of Vice President Joe Biden speaking to some young guys after the White House's Father's Day barbecue. This was at the very end, and most of the press had packed up and left, but Joe took the extra time to spend with these kids. >>>NEXT: My 2009 In Photos Photos As a slightly starstruck neophyte, I was not above asking the occasional luminary for a photo, but I developed a style all my own for these. Eschewing (for the most part) the posed, "Say cheese!" snapshot, I made it my mission to make these pictures appear to be candid, and appear to be taken by someone else. In the gallery at the end of this post, you can see some of the good sports who played along. Here are some of the photos I took this year, many of which are appearing for the first time. Make sure you click on the image, then click it again, to read the descriptions.

2009: Tommy Christopher’s Year In Review

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2009: Tommy Christopher’s Year In Review

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