White House Reporters Hammer Trump For Banning Reporters From Dinner with Kim Jong Un
White House reporters are up in arms over the Trump administration’s decision to ban four reporters from a photo op between Trump and North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un, after it attempted to ban all reporters from the event.
On Wednesday night in Hanoi, Wall Street Journal print pool reporter Vivian Salama reported that “Sarah Sanders informed us that no print reporters would be allowed in [the Kim/Trump dinner] due to sensitivities over shouted questions in the previous sprays,” leaving open the impression that it was the North Korean dictator’s objection.
“But when our photo colleagues joined us in protest, they decided to allow one print reporter in,” Salama added.
Sanders released another statement shortly thereafter, again implying that the restrictions were the subject of “negotiations” of some sort (pool report via email from The White House):
“Due to the sensitive nature of the meetings we have limited the pool for the dinner to a smaller group, but ensured that representation of photographers, tv, radio and print Poolers are all in the room. We are continuing to negotiate aspects of this historic summit and will always work to make sure the U.S. media has as much access as possible.”
But outraged White House reporters were quick to point out that the reporters in question — AP’s Jonathan Lemire, Reuters’ Jeff Mason, Bloomberg‘s Justin Sink, and the Los Angeles Times‘ Eli Stokols — were banned after two of them shouted questions at Trump, not Kim, and that they were banned by the Trump White House:
Wire writers from @Reuters @AP @business were excluded from going with the press pool to see the dinner between @realDonaldTrump and #KimJongUn. AP colleague @JonLemire and I were among those. We both asked questions during the first “pool spray” when the two leaders shook hands.
— Jeff Mason (@jeffmason1) February 27, 2019
To be clear, the reporters are being excluded by an official from the US government, not foreign officials, in one of the more outrageous moves by this White House. https://t.co/jsTmOyDaY0
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) February 27, 2019
White House made the second move after uncomfortable questions were put to the president about denuclearization and Cohen. https://t.co/KnL20QYrVx
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) February 27, 2019
.@PressSec‘s original explanation for barring reporters was sensitivities over previous shouted questions, per print pooler @vmsalama.
Sanders’ official explanation: “Due to the sensitive nature of the meetings we have limited the pool for the dinner to a smaller group”
— Kathryn Watson (@kathrynw5) February 27, 2019
White House bans four journalists — and attempts to ban more — from covering Trump-Kim dinner because of shouted questions as a dictator looks on. Asked if North Korea was to blame, White House declined to give a direct answer. Latest w/@philiprucker: https://t.co/7E2oamCHCr
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) February 27, 2019
Some White House reporters noted that Trump seemed to want to have it both ways by banning all reporters (as they initially tried to do) while allowing photojournalists to lovingly photograph the event:
White House blocked most print reporters from Trump-Kim Jong Un dinner after reporters shouted questions at Trump in earlier meeting. Then, in dinner, Trump praised a photographer for his good pictures. Then, he joked that the “media make us look very good!” Per pooler @vmsalama
— Josh Dawsey (@jdawsey1) February 27, 2019
The WH is suggesting this was about North Korea, but President Trump was the person getting questions he didn’t like. Amazing that the WH would try to mimic an autocratic press environment in which only pictures, not questions are allowed of the President of the United States. https://t.co/ehAwFvhFtF
— Abby D. Phillip (@abbydphillip) February 27, 2019
It’s almost like they just want the photo op. https://t.co/vRDGhrvB9h
— Andrew Beatty (@AndrewBeatty) February 27, 2019
Trump apparently didn’t like US reporters’ questions about troubles back home as he did his photo op with KJU.
WH excluded reporters from next event and allowed only photographers (who generally don’t ask Qs). But when photographers protested, WH granted access to 1 US reporter. https://t.co/Mej3xPXqv1
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) February 27, 2019
To the still photographers’ credit, they refused to shoot the dinner if no reporters were allowed in, which was the initial WH response. Because of that solidarity, a print and radio pooler were allowed in with the stills. Four print/wire reporters were still barred.
— Eli Stokols (@EliStokols) February 27, 2019
Others blasted the decision to ban reporters, and praised the solidarity demonstrated by the photographers:
Censorship by the White House. https://t.co/ua334fxliJ
— Jennifer Jacobs (@JenniferJJacobs) February 27, 2019
This is important. Trump has benefited time after time from a divide and conquer strategy with the press corps, first in NYC and then in the campaign and now in DC. https://t.co/l35kgPZC9p
— Maggie Haberman (@maggieNYT) February 27, 2019
Clumsily shutting down the American press is a misguided way to try and impress a dictator. https://t.co/kipChB5dwL
— Katie Rogers (@katierogers) February 27, 2019
I love the stills – besides being incredibly talented, the still photographers are people of integrity. They help each other – and reporters too. Go Stills!
— Tara McKelvey (@Tara_Mckelvey) February 27, 2019
Usually it’s totalitarian host countries that limit White House reporters’ access at summits, not White House @PressSec https://t.co/amxPquUbvn
— Andrea Mitchell (@mitchellreports) February 27, 2019
remembering today that when @JonLemire asked Trump in Helsinki if he would denounce Russian election interference to Putin’s face (Trump responded by suggesting he believed Putin over U.S. intel), Trump was mad Lemire got called on https://t.co/6gdk9B8Y0Hhttps://t.co/3J2l7IfF1d
— Mark Berman (@markberman) February 27, 2019
I totally understand @realDonaldTrump wanting Kim to have copies of the photos @dougmillsnyt shot of their private dinner.
When you are “in love” with someone as much as @realDonaldTrump appears to be with Kim Jong Un, you want to give that person the very best. https://t.co/ZzgzElvKG1
— Andrew Feinberg (@AndrewFeinberg) February 27, 2019
Indeed, during the Obama administration, then-White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs famously fought to keep reporters inside events in foreign countries, rather than banning them.
