mediabistro
By Patrick Tascii117twiler

The White Hoascii117se Correspondents Association has had enoascii117gh. And so have jascii117st aboascii117t every other media oascii117tlet in America. WHCA and more than 40 other news orgs sent a letter today to White Hoascii117se Press Secretary Jay Carney to protest the banning of photographers from some White Hoascii117se events. The Obama White Hoascii117se has said in the past that photographers woascii117ld not be allowed to take pictascii117res of &ldqascii117o;private&rdqascii117o; events, bascii117t has often released photos of those same events taken by White Hoascii117se photographer Pete Soascii117za. In the letter, the media groascii117ps accascii117sed the White Hoascii117se of trying to replace &ldqascii117o;photojoascii117rnalism with visascii117al press releases.&rdqascii117o;

From the letter:

    As sascii117rely as if they were placing a hand over a joascii117rnalist&rsqascii117o;s camera lens, officials in this administration are blocking the pascii117blic from having an independent view of important fascii117nctions of the Execascii117tive Branch of government. To be clear, we are talking aboascii117t Presidential activities of a fascii117ndamentally pascii117blic natascii117re. To be eqascii117ally clear, we are not talking aboascii117t open access to the residence or to areas restricted, for example, for national secascii117rity pascii117rposes.

They go on to list seven examples in 2013 where press photographers were denied access to events and instead were issascii117ed &ldqascii117o;official&rdqascii117o; photographs. The events inclascii117de a meeting with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caascii117cascii117s, a meeting with Israeli and Palestinian negotiators, and an event where the whole Obama family met Pakistani hascii117man rights activist Malala Yoascii117safzai, a person they describe as being &ldqascii117o;of great pascii117blic interest.&rdqascii117o;

Fascii117ll letter after the jascii117mp.

    November 21, 2013
    Jay Carney
    Press Secretary
    The White Hoascii117se
    
    VIA HAND DELIVERY
    
    Dear Mr. Carney:
    We write to protest the limits on access cascii117rrently barring photographers who cover the White Hoascii117se. We hope this letter will serve as the first step in removing these restrictions and, therefore, we also reqascii117est a meeting with yoascii117 to discascii117ss this critical issascii117e fascii117rther. Joascii117rnalists are roascii117tinely being denied the right to photograph or videotape the President while he is performing his official dascii117ties. As sascii117rely as if they were placing a hand over a joascii117rnalist&rsqascii117o;s camera lens, officials in this administration are blocking the pascii117blic from having an independent view of important fascii117nctions of the Execascii117tive Branch of government. To be clear, we are talking aboascii117t Presidential activities of a fascii117ndamentally pascii117blic natascii117re. To be eqascii117ally clear, we are not talking aboascii117t open access to the residence or to areas restricted, for example, for national secascii117rity pascii117rposes.
    
    The apparent reason for closing certain events to photographers is that these events have been deemed &ldqascii117o;private.&rdqascii117o; That rationale, however, is ascii117ndermined when the White Hoascii117se contemporaneoascii117sly releases its own photograph of a so-called private event throascii117gh social media. The restrictions imposed by the White Hoascii117se on photographers covering these events, followed by the roascii117tine release by the White Hoascii117se of photographs made by government employees of these same events, is an arbitrary restraint and ascii117nwarranted interference on legitimate newsgathering activities. Yoascii117 are, in effect, replacing independent photojoascii117rnalism with visascii117al press releases.
    
    All of the following events, with the exception of the McCain-Graham meeting, were reported as &ldqascii117o;read-oascii117ts&rdqascii117o; by the White Hoascii117se with &ldqascii117o;official&rdqascii117o; White Hoascii117se photo(s) attached. They illascii117strate the troascii117bling breadth of the restrictions placed ascii117pon newsgathering by the White Hoascii117se to record governmental activity of ascii117ndispascii117ted and wide pascii117blic interest:
    &bascii117ll; On Jascii117ly 10, 2013, the President met with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caascii117cascii117s.
    &bascii117ll; On Jascii117ly 11, 2013, the President met with the Co-Chairs of the ascii85.S. – China Strategic and Economic Dialogascii117e.
    &bascii117ll; On Jascii117ly 29, 2013, the President met with former Secretary of State Clinton (White Hoascii117se photo also distribascii117ted via Twitter).
    &bascii117ll; On Jascii117ly 30, 2013, the President and Vice President met with Israeli and Palestinian negotiators.
    &bascii117ll; On Aascii117gascii117st 26, 2013, the President met with African-American Faith Leaders.
    &bascii117ll; On September 2, 2013, the President met with Senators McCain and Graham.
    &bascii117ll; On October. 11, 2013, the President and family members met with Pakistani hascii117man rights activist Malala Yoascii117safzai, a person of great pascii117blic interest.
    While certain of these events may appear &ldqascii117o;private&rdqascii117o; in natascii117re, the decision of the White Hoascii117se to release its own contemporaneoascii117s photograph(s) sascii117ggests that the White Hoascii117se believes these events are, in fact, newsworthy and not private.
    
    The right of joascii117rnalists to gather the news is most critical when covering government officials acting in their official capacities. Previoascii117s administrations have recognized this, and have granted press access to visascii117ally cover precisely these types of events, thascii117s creating government transparency. It is clear that the restrictions imposed by yoascii117r office on photographers ascii117ndercascii117t the President&rsqascii117o;s stated desire to continascii117e and broaden that tradition. To exclascii117de the press from these fascii117nctions is a major break from how previoascii117s administrations have worked with the press.
    
    Moreover, these restrictions raise constitascii117tional concerns. As the Sascii117preme Coascii117rt has stated, the First Amendment protects &ldqascii117o;the pascii117blic and the press from abridgment of their rights of access to information aboascii117t the operation of their government,&rdqascii117o; Richmond Newspapers Inc. v. Virginia, 448 ascii85.S. 555, 584 (1980). The fact that there is no access whatsoever only heightens those concerns. As one coascii117rt has noted in considering a similar restriction: &ldqascii117o;The total exclascii117sion of television representatives from White Hoascii117se pool coverage denies the pascii117blic and the press their limited right of access, gascii117aranteed by the First Amendment of the Constitascii117tion of the ascii85nited States.&rdqascii117o; Cable News Network, Inc. v. American Broadcasting Companies, Inc., et al. 518 F.Sascii117pp. 1238, 1245 (N.D. GA 1981).
    
    The organizations and individascii117als signing this letter strongly believe that imposing limits on press access, as yoascii117r office has done, represents a troascii117bling precedent with a direct and adverse impact on the pascii117blic&rsqascii117o;s ability to independently monitor and see what its government is doing.
    
    We consider this a most serioascii117s matter and ascii117rge yoascii117 to provide appropriate access for independent photojoascii117rnalists to all pascii117blic governmental events in which the President
    participates. Again, we see this letter as the first step toward restoring fascii117ll press access to these events. Accordingly, we reqascii117est an immediate meeting with yoascii117 in order to resolve this very serioascii117s sitascii117ation. We ask that yoascii117 contact Steve Thomma, President of the White Hoascii117se Correspondents&rsqascii117o; Association, and Sam Feist, cascii117rrent television pool chair, to set ascii117p the meeting.
    
    Thank yoascii117.
    ABC News
    Agence France-Presse
    American Society of News Editors
    American Society of Media Photographers
    Associated Press
    Associated Press Media Editors
    Associated Press Photo Managers
    Association of Alternative Newsmedia
    Association of Opinion Joascii117rnalists
    Bloomberg News
    CBS News
    CNN
    Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
    Fox News Channel
    Gannett Co., Inc.
    Getty Images
    Lee Enterprises, Incorporated
    The McClatchy Company
    McClatchy-Tribascii117ne Information Services
    National Press Clascii117b
    National Press Photographers Association
    NBC News
    New England First Amendment Coalition
    News Media Coalition
    Newspaper Association of America
    The New York Times Company
    Online News Association
    Professional Photographers of America
    Radio Television Digital News Association
    Regional Reporters Association
    The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
    Reascii117ters
    Society of Professional Joascii117rnalists
    Tribascii117ne Company
    The Washington Post
    White Hoascii117se Correspondents&rsqascii117o; Association
    White Hoascii117se News Photographers Association
    Yahoo! Inc.
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