Televised WH Briefings A ‘Mistake’

Question: Who thinks that televising White House press briefings was a big mistake? Ari Fleischer, Mike McCurry, or Cox’s Ken Herman? Answer: All of the above, they tell Kit Seelye today.

The reason? It’s led to what a clinical psychologist called “‘White House reporter syndrome,’ “in which competitive high achievers feel restricted and controlled and become emotionally isolated from others who are not steeped in the same experience.” The psychologist added that she’s counseled several White House correspondents in recent years (Who? For what? Huh?).

Slate’s John Dickerson meanwhile rose to the defense of the televised briefings, saying that while there is pressure, “the role of the press is to bang its fist on the table, and if the answer is reasonable and makes us look foolish, fine.”

In the end, though, the reporters in the briefing room should be comforted by the sage observation of the WP’s Dana Milbank: “We’re one of the most reviled subsets of one of the most reviled professions…. We’re going to lose the battle every time.”

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