The White House is curtailing press access to President Trump’s South Lawn departures to reduce “jostling and general chaos” before Trump boards helicopters for out-of-town trips.
Trump’s habit of speaking to reporters has resulted in near-daily scrambles as journalists seek the best spot along a “rope line” near the Rose Garden. Reporters, cameramen, and boom-holders gather north of the West Wing for his departures, and when doors open, they rush toward the spot of asphalt, restrained only by their sense of fairness as they push past peers.
Now, a small group of journalists making up the rotating in-town “pool” will have a first stab at securing a spot, meaning better access for pool reporters, and likely worse spots for cable TV crews known for nabbing front-row positions for cameramen and their celebrity hosts.
White House Correspondents’ Association President Olivier Knox informed journalists Thursday that the White House is curtailing the disorganized dash.
“[T]he White House informs me of a new protocol governing South Lawn departures,” Knox said in an email. “Until the WHCA comes up with a workable plan that cuts back on the jostling and general chaos along the rope line, the White House will be escorting the *in-house pool* with tv audio out to the rope line in the first wave.”
“The second wave will be the usual free-for-all,” Knox said.
Knox described a collaborative process with officials to come up with a better system for Trump’s South Lawn departures, which are broadcast on television.
“I have been working with the White House, Secret Service, the rest of the Board, and TV bureau chiefs to try to find a solution to a situation everyone seems to agree is unsustainable,” he wrote.
“We want to preserve the ‘open press’ nature of these events, which has served us well. I understand that this is often the best – and sometimes the only – venue for asking the president questions. That means the stakes are high. I want everyone who covers the White House to be able to do their job. And I also want everyone to be safe. Those are my main concerns as I pursue a solution.”
Knox invited feedback for a new system, and said that one request he’s pursuing is to have “live, not-for-broadcast audio piped back” to desks where reporters work in the West Wing. Currently, the audio is played on delay when reporters pour back to workspaces.
The White House declined to comment on the change.
[Also read: Trump: Dumping on the press is ‘my only form of fighting back’]
