{"id":2327167,"date":"2024-08-19T22:00:02","date_gmt":"2024-08-20T02:00:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/traditional-press-fuming-over-democratic-convention-seating-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2024-08-19T22:13:42","modified_gmt":"2024-08-20T02:13:42","slug":"traditional-press-fuming-over-democratic-convention-seating-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/traditional-press-fuming-over-democratic-convention-seating-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Traditional press fuming over Democratic convention seating &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftraditional-press-fuming-over-democratic-convention-seating-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2327167&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>At the Democratic\u2063 National Convention in Chicago, traditional press members expressed \u200dfrustration over\u200c a significant reduction in available\u200c workspace for journalists compared to previous \u2064conventions. The convention has prioritized <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/why-this-average-american-is-voting-for-donald-trump\/\" title=\"Why This Average American Is Voting for Donald Trump\">social media<\/a> influencers, credentialing 200 of\u200c them and\u2062 allocating a dedicated \u200bcreator platform on \u2063the convention floor, \u200cleaving <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/breaking-trust-in-fake-news-mainstream-media-at-all-time-low\/\" title=\"BREAKING: Trust in Fake News Mainstream Media at ALL-TIME LOW\">traditional media<\/a> with \u200conly 47 \u200cworkspace seats.\u2064 This shift has raised \u200dconcerns \u2064among veteran journalists \u2062about the diminishing\u2062 access and emphasis on social media over traditional reporting, with some suggesting it reflects a \u200cstrategic move by Democrats to engage more \u2064audience through influencers. While organizers claimed that the press has \u200cbeen allocated similar\u200b resources as before, the Standing Committee of Correspondents\u2062 has voiced concerns over the reduced workspace, which they believe could hinder comprehensive \u200bcoverage of\u2062 the event. Despite the contentious seating situation, the convention does \u200bprovide free press seats, a contrast\u200d to the Republican National Convention, which charged\u2063 for press seating but offered more\u2062 accommodations.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Traditional press fuming over DNC seating in Chicago for Kamala Harris&rsquo;s convention<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1733956\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p><strong>CHICAGO &mdash; <\/strong>Press arriving at the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/democratic-national-convention\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Democratic National Convention<\/a> found the number of traditional press workspace seats gutted from previous conventions and instead a state-of-the-art riser constructed for TikTokers.<\/p>\n<p>The United Center, where Vice President <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/kamala-harris\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title>Kamala Harris<\/a> will accept the nomination, credentialed 200 social media influencers and built a &ldquo;first-ever creator platform&rdquo; directly on the convention floor to give them a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/how-non-fungible-tokens-and-blockchain-are-changing-the-art-and-music-worlds\/\" title=\"How Non-Fungible Tokens And Blockchain Are Changing The Art And Music Worlds\">front-row seat<\/a> and direct access to the action.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>In turn, traditional print and wire service media were assigned 47 press stand seats equipped with nonstadium chairs, a desk, internet, and power. The result was too many journalists and not enough seats in the arena.<\/p>\n<p>In comparison, at the Republican National Convention last month, daily press and periodical journalists had access to 360 work stand seats at the smaller Fiserv Forum in Milwaukee. In 2016, at the Democratic National Convention when Hillary Clinton accepted the nomination, press had about 230 workspaces in the arena.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"550\" data-dnt=\"true\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Belated post but this is social media influencer stage at the DNC, first of its kind <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/60UAgQK0DW\">pic.twitter.com\/60UAgQK0DW<\/a><\/p>\n<p>&mdash; Marisa Schultz (@marisa_schultz) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/marisa_schultz\/status\/1825706376087183830?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\">August 20, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script> <\/div>\n<\/figure>\n<p>&ldquo;Never has the press been given the type of seating that they have now,&rdquo; said <em>Pittsburgh Post-Gazette<\/em> deputy managing editor for politics Jonathan Salant, who is covering his 20th convention. &ldquo;There&rsquo;s always been plenty of space.&rdquo;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Another veteran journalist said the seating decision reflected a choice from Democrats to prioritize social media influencers who are promoting Harris over objective and trained journalists.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Basically, what they&rsquo;re saying is, we think we can reach more people through influencers than we think through the traditional press. That&rsquo;s the bottom line,&rdquo; the journalist said.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>After receiving the seating arrangement, a journalist who negotiated credentials for another news outlet put it bluntly, &ldquo;We got f***ed, but at least we all got f***ed equally,&rdquo; referring to all newspapers and wire services getting far fewer seats than requested.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The hard feelings among the press tracks with greater frustration with Harris refusing to hold a press conference since becoming the new Democratic Party nominee, nearly a month after President Joe Biden <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/presidential\/3064997\/joe-biden-bows-out-of-2024-presidential-race\/\">bowed out<\/a> of the race on July 21, 2024.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Democratic National Convention, however, said credentialing content creators has not affected access or credential allocations for traditional media. There are 15,000 members of the international, domestic, and local press credentialed to cover the convention, compared to 200 content creators.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Asked by the <em>Washington Examiner<\/em> whether content creators were taking seats from traditional press, Jaime Harrison, chairman of the Democratic Party, said no.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;No, we just created more space for them off the floor for the influencers,&rdquo; Harrison told the <em>Washington Examiner.<\/em> &ldquo;Press has all of the same stuff that they&rsquo;ve had in the past.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The Standing Committee of Correspondents, which represents the traditional print and wire services, including outlets like the <em>Associated Press, New York Times, <\/em>and the <em>Washington Post,<\/em> has been raising concerns about the lack of press access inside the stadium.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Standing Committee of Correspondents urged the DNC to allocate significantly more workspace for print journalists attending this year&rsquo;s convention in Chicago than they decided to provide,&rdquo; the Standing Committee of Correspondents said in a statement Monday. &ldquo;While we appreciate the DNC&rsquo;s willingness to listen to our requests, including after Vice President Kamala Harris became the nominee, we are concerned that the decision to reduce dedicated and accessible workspace by hundreds compared to prior conventions will hinder journalists&rsquo; ability to cover the historic nature of this convention.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In addition to the 47 traditional seats in section 114, the DNC assigned roughly 130 additional stadium seats for the press in the upper tier of the arena in section 321. This seating raised safety and evacuation concerns for journalists with mobility problems because they would have to climb into the space from behind the seat if the row is occupied by writers on their laptops in makeshift desks in the stadium row. There&rsquo;s additional unassigned press open seating in the arena, but without power or the ability to plug in a laptop, the essential tool for a working journalist.<\/p>\n<p>The press seats at the United Center, while limited, are free. The Republican National Committee charged $150 for a seat in the Fiserv Forum but offered far more seats to the press to see former President Donald Trump, known for bashing the &ldquo;fake news,&rdquo; accept the nomination.<\/p>\n<p>The difference in Chicago is that journalists without a seat in the United Center have far higher costs for workspace in the adjacent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/what-to-watch-for-sunday-on-the-eve-of-the-democratic-national-convention-washington-examiner\/\" title=\"What to watch for Sunday on the eve of the Democratic National Convention - Washington Examiner\">media filing center<\/a>. The price for the assigned space in the media filing center is $911 a seat at the Advocate Center, compared to $100 a seat in Milwaukee at the Baird Center just a month earlier at the RNC.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike Milwaukee, Chicago welcomed the press with a big party at Navy Pier featuring live music, free drinks, and local fare such as Chicago-style hot dogs. As the press mingled and enjoyed the free fare, they also worried about the ability to do their jobs this week while jockeying for space.<\/p>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Convention organizers said fewer desks are available because of space limitations at the United Center.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Democrats value a free press, and the convention will be a reflection of that,&rdquo; a Democratic National Convention spokesperson told the <em>Washington Examiner. <\/em>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve prioritized making sure members of the media have the resources they need to bring the story of our convention out to their communities from both inside and outside of the convention hall, and we look forward to working with members of the media and content creators alike as we bring the story of our convention, our party, and the Harris-Walz ticket to the American people.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1733956\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1733956\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Traditional media outlets are expressing frustration over the seating arrangements at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, where they found a significant reduction in workspace compared to past events. Instead of ample press seating, a modern platform was created for TikTok influencers. The United Center, where Vice President Kamala Harris is set to accept her nomination, has credentialed 200 social media influencers and established a &#8220;first-ever creator platform&#8221; on the convention floor for them to have direct access to the proceedings. In contrast, traditional print and wire service journalists were allocated only 47 seats with basic amenities like nonstadium chairs and internet access. This situation has led to an imbalance between the number of journalists present and available seating.<\/p>\n<p>At last month&#8217;s Republican National Convention, journalists had access to 360 workspaces at a smaller venue in Milwaukee. In comparison, during the 2016 Democratic National Convention when Hillary Clinton was nominated, there were around 230 workspaces available for reporters.<\/p>\n<p>Jonathan Salant from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette noted that this is unprecedented in terms of press accommodations at conventions. Another journalist suggested that this decision indicates Democrats&#8217; preference for reaching audiences through influencers rather than traditional journalism.<\/p>\n<p>After learning about their limited seating arrangement, one journalist remarked on how all news outlets received fewer seats than they had requested. The dissatisfaction among reporters is compounded by Harris&#8217;s lack of press conferences since becoming the nominee nearly a month after President Biden withdrew from his campaign.<\/p>\n<p>The DNC maintains that allowing content creators does not diminish access or resources for traditional media; there are still approximately 15,000 accredited members of various press organizations covering the event compared to just 200 content creators. Jaime Harrison from the Democratic Party stated that additional space was created off-floor specifically for influencers without impacting traditional press allocations.<\/p>\n<p>However, concerns persist among representatives of print and wire services regarding inadequate workspace availability inside the arena compared to previous conventions. They expressed worries that reduced dedicated areas would hinder effective coverage of this significant event.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to designated seats in section 114 for traditional media personnel, roughly another 130 upper-tier stadium seats were assigned but raised safety issues due to accessibility challenges posed by their location within occupied rows.<\/p>\n<p>While some unassigned open seating exists within the arena without power sources necessary for laptops\u2014an essential tool for working journalists\u2014the overall situation remains challenging as many reporters face higher costs associated with workspace outside of United Center compared with previous conventions held elsewhere.<\/p>\n<p>Despite these difficulties faced by journalists trying to do their jobs effectively during this week\u2019s convention activities amidst limited space availability issues highlighted by organizers citing venue constraints as reasons behind fewer desks being provided overall\u2014Democratic officials assert their commitment towards supporting free press initiatives throughout such events moving forward while collaborating closely alongside both conventional news entities along with emerging digital platforms alike throughout ongoing coverage efforts surrounding party narratives leading up towards upcoming elections ahead!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3300,"featured_media":2327168,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/AP24233052033404.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[538],"tags":[38076,38626,38625],"class_list":["post-2327167","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-washington-examiner","tag-democratic-convention","tag-seating-controversy","tag-traditional-media"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/AP24233052033404.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2327167","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3300"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2327167"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2327167\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2327168"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2327167"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2327167"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2327167"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}