{"id":2406939,"date":"2025-02-26T11:55:02","date_gmt":"2025-02-26T16:55:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/whca-cared-more-about-protecting-biden-than-defending-1a\/"},"modified":"2025-02-26T12:00:35","modified_gmt":"2025-02-26T17:00:35","slug":"whca-cared-more-about-protecting-biden-than-defending-1a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/whca-cared-more-about-protecting-biden-than-defending-1a\/","title":{"rendered":"WHCA Cared More About Protecting Biden Than Defending 1A"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">18<\/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%2Fwhca-cared-more-about-protecting-biden-than-defending-1a%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=2406939&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>On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced a \u2062important change in how journalists are selected to cover\u200b the \u2062president,\u200d stating that the White\u200d House Press Office would \u2062now determine which reporters can attend daily \u2063briefings, eliminating the \u2063White House Correspondents\u2019 Association (WHCA) exclusive right\u200b to make these selections. While <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/border-patrol-arrests-two-illegal-immigrants-from-yemen-on-fbi-terror-watch-list\/\" title=\"Border Patrol Arrests Two Illegal Immigrants From Yemen On FBI Terror Watch List\">corporate media outlets<\/a> will still be\u200d included, this\u2064 decision has sparked \u2063outrage among WHCA members, who claim\u2063 it undermines the independence \u2062of the press.<\/p>\n<p>WHCA President\u2062 Eugene Daniels criticized the change,\u200d likening it \u2064to government\u2064 control \u2063of the press. Some media figures, including Peter Baker from The New \u2062York \u2063Times,\u200d expressed concern over the implications\u2063 for independent journalism. However, critics argue that the WHCA has historically prioritized protecting Democratic interests \u200dover <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/a-moscow-court-delays-decision-on-the-appeal-of-jailed-wall-street-journal-reporter-evan-gershkovich\/\" title=\"Moscow Court postpones ruling on appeal of WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich.\">defending press freedom<\/a>, citing its\u200b silence\u200d during the Biden governance&#8217;s revocation of reporters&#8217; press credentials and \u2062its\u200d selective support\u200c for certain outlets while disregarding conservative media.<\/p>\n<p>The article suggests the WHCA\u2019s internal biases\u200d and its failure to advocate for a genuinely free press have been evident, especially in their treatment of right-leaning media. Moreover, it describes \u200bthe organization as \u200ca gatekeeping entity that favors corporate media narratives, thus threatening journalistic integrity by monopolizing the \u200bnarrative\u200b surrounding press\u200d coverage.<\/p>\n<p>the new rules are seen as a challenge to the WHCA\u2019s traditional control over \u200dpress access, sparking a debate about media bias, press freedom, and the role of different news organizations in covering the presidency.  <\/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<div>\n<p>On Tuesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that the White House Press Office will now decide which reporters will get to cover the president daily, ending the White House Correspondents&rsquo; Association (WHCA) exclusive role in selecting journalists for the job. Leavitt clarified that corporate media outlets would still be included, but the WHCA&rsquo;s power to handpick the press pool is over. <\/p>\n<p>Unsurprisingly, the WHCA and its <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">members quickly cried foul<\/a> and  feigned outrage about &ldquo;free press.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>WHCA President Eugene Daniels <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2025\/02\/25\/media\/white-house-correspondents-pool\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said<\/a> the change &ldquo;tears at the independence of a free press in the United States.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Peter Baker of The New York Times went so far as to compare the change &mdash; expanding access for independent media &mdash; to the Kremlin taking &ldquo;over its own press pool.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;None of this will stop professional news outlets from covering this president in the same full, fair, tough and unflinching way that we always have,&rdquo; Baker <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/peterbakernyt\/status\/1894472450357723500\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">said in a post<\/a> on X. &ldquo;Government efforts to punish disfavored organizations will not stop independent journalism.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>But their so-called concern for &ldquo;free press&rdquo; rings hollow. When freedom of the press was actually under attack, the WHCA stood by silent and indifferent because the press was more concerned about protecting then-President Joe Biden and Democratic interests.<\/p>\n<p>When the Biden White House revoked 442 reporters&rsquo; press credentials, the WHCA <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailysignal.com\/2025\/02\/26\/trump-shakes-up-white-house-press-pool-legacy-media-whines\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">took<\/a> &ldquo;an officially noncommittal stance.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The WHCA selectively defended outlets and reporters, filing amici briefs on behalf of CNN&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/story\/2018\/11\/15\/whca-amicus-brief-cnn-lawsuit-992511\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Jim Acosta<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/whca.press\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Amicus-Brief.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Brian Karem<\/a> after their hard passes were revoked. The WHCA also released a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.thedailybeast.com\/after-the-kaitlan-collins-banishment-its-time-for-white-house-reporters-to-stand-together\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">statement<\/a> in defense of CNN&rsquo;s Kaitlin Collins when she was barred from an event.<\/p>\n<p>But, as the Daily Caller&rsquo;s <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/03\/17\/how-corporate-medias-top-dogs-box-out-real-reporters-from-asking-tough-questions-of-the-white-house\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Amber Athey<\/a> wrote in these pages, &ldquo;the WHCA voted to remove conservative One America News Network (OANN) from the briefing room rotation for not abiding by its contrived social distancing guidelines, even though OANN&rsquo;s correspondent had been personally invited to be in the briefing room by the Trump administration.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>The WHCA was notably silent when The Federalist, along with The Daily Wire, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/biden-state-dept-blacklists-conservative-news-outlets-lawsuit-claims-censorship-regime\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">sued<\/a> the State Department for <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/state-department-under-fire-for-funding-group-secretly-blacklisting-conservative-media-outlets\/\" title=\"State Department Under Fire for Funding Group Secretly Blacklisting ... ...\">blacklisting conservative media outlets<\/a>. And as The Federalist co-founder and CEO Sean Davis <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/seanmdav\/status\/1894507291145375991\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pointed out<\/a>, &ldquo;When the Biden White House demanded that big tech companies like Facebook and Google censor conservative media outlets for the crime of critically reporting on the Biden White House, the WHCA didn&rsquo;t object.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>When former President Joe Biden was caught relying on a cheat sheet with pre-arranged questions, the WHCA stayed silent about the lack of &ldquo;free&rdquo; press happening. Ironically, one of the reporters on the cheat sheet, the Los Angeles Times&rsquo; Courtney Subramanian, was <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/06\/30\/white-house-journo-who-fed-her-question-to-joe-biden-elected-to-whca-board-seat\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">later elected<\/a> to the WHCA Board in 2023. <\/p>\n<p>The WHCA&rsquo;s absence in defending actual free speech has been glaring, and their treatment of independent and conservative media has been nothing short of contemptuous.<\/p>\n<p>A <a href=\"https:\/\/whcinsider.com\/2021\/12\/27\/whca-announces-new-seating-chart-for-white-house-briefing-room\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">seating chart<\/a> for the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/white-house-journo-who-fed-her-question-to-joe-biden-elected-to-whca-board-seat\/\" title=\"White House journalist who gave her question to Joe Biden chosen for ... board position.\">presidential press briefing room<\/a> from February 2022 revealed just nine of the nearly 50 media seats were for outlets that lean conservative, as my colleague Maisey Jefferson <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2023\/06\/30\/white-house-journo-who-fed-her-question-to-joe-biden-elected-to-whca-board-seat\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">reported<\/a>. &ldquo;Of this already small group, more than half are placed in the back row.&rdquo;<\/p>\n[[<strong>READ NEXT: <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2020\/02\/19\/comedian-or-historian-the-white-house-correspondents-dinner-is-still-a-silly-orgy-of-elitism\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">White House Correspondents Dinner Is Still A Silly Orgy Of Elitism<\/a>]<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>But it&rsquo;s not just the WHCA&rsquo;s collective bias that&rsquo;s troubling &mdash; it&rsquo;s the swampy personalities that infest it. Take PBS White House correspondent Yamiche Alcindor, who praised the 1619 Project and called its creator a &ldquo;national treasure.&rdquo; She also <a href=\"https:\/\/thefdrlst.wpengine.com\/2020\/04\/10\/woke-reporter-accuses-black-surgeon-general-of-racism\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">accused<\/a> then-U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams (who is black) of being racist while <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AugustTakala\/status\/1240327586087125003?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1240327586087125003%7Ctwgr%5Eshare_3&amp;ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fthefdrlst.wpengine.com%2F2020%2F04%2F10%2Fwoke-reporter-accuses-black-surgeon-general-of-racism%2F\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">attacking<\/a> President Donald Trump for using the phrase &ldquo;Kung Flu&rdquo; to refer to the Chinese coronavirus, as <a href=\"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/2020\/09\/18\/pbs-reporter-defends-riot-cheerleading-1619-project-writer-as-a-national-treasure\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">pointed<\/a> out by my colleague Tristan Justice. Alcindor&rsquo;s constant baseless attacks earned her a prestigious WHCA award, only further exposing the organization&rsquo;s true agenda.<\/p>\n<p>As The Federalist&rsquo;s Editor-in-Chief Mollie Hemingway <a href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/MZHemingway\/status\/1894553581782507987\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">put it<\/a>, the WHCA is a &ldquo;multi-tiered gatekeeping scam&rdquo; designed to ensure that the corporate press controls the narrative and can push their own elitist, left-wing agenda at the expense of true journalistic integrity. The only reason the WHCA is upset about his rule change is because it threatens their monopoly on so-called &ldquo;free press.&rdquo; <\/p>\n<hr>\n<p>      Brianna Lyman is an elections correspondent at The Federalist. Brianna graduated from Fordham University with a degree in International Political Economy. Her work has been featured on Newsmax, Fox News, Fox Business and RealClearPolitics. Follow Brianna on X: @briannalyman2<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The White House will now choose reporters for daily coverage<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":74,"featured_media":2406940,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Screenshot-2025-02-26-at-10.59.44-AM-e1740585672678-1024x576.png","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[33332,44205,36427],"class_list":["post-2406939","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-first-amendment","tag-press-freedom","tag-whca"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/thefederalist.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Screenshot-2025-02-26-at-10.59.44-AM-e1740585672678-1024x576.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406939","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\/74"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2406939"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406939\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2406943,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2406939\/revisions\/2406943"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2406940"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2406939"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2406939"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2406939"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}