CNN’s senior White House correspondent Jim Acosta on Monday said the White House is barring recording equipment from its daily press briefings so that its “evasive answers” to reporters’ questions will not be documented on tape.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer’s daily briefing on Monday was off-camera, with no broadcast or audio recording allowed. Acosta tweeted updates from the briefing, as well as some commentary of his own.
The Spicer off-camera/no audio gaggle has begun. I can't show you a pic of Sean. So here is a look at some new socks I bought over the wknd pic.twitter.com/wO9erspwYa
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) June 19, 2017
Spicer on #wherearethetapes – "It's possible we will have an answer to that at the end of the week."
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) June 19, 2017
Spicer says fate of "dreamers" remains up in the air: "DACA is something that is ongoing."
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) June 19, 2017
Spicer still can't say whether POTUS believes in climate change
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) June 19, 2017
At off camera no audio briefing, Spicer took a question from a Russian reporter but not from CNN. #pravda
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) June 19, 2017
.@Acosta asks what's the point of having no cameras/mics in here if Spicer still won't answer us.
— Jared Rizzi (@JaredRizzi) June 19, 2017
Make no mistake about what we are all witnessing. This is a WH that is stonewalling the news media. Hiding behind no camera/no audio gaggles
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) June 19, 2017
There is a suppression of information going on at this WH that would not be tolerated at a city council mtg or press conf with a state gov.
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) June 19, 2017
Call me old fashioned but I think the White House of the United States of America should have the backbone to answer questions on camera.
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) June 19, 2017
Speaking to “CNN Newsroom” anchor Brooke Baldwin after the briefing, Acosta said covering briefings under President Donald Trump’s administration is like “covering bad reality television.”
“The White House is refusing to answer those questions on camera or in any kind of fashion where we can record the audio,” Acosta said. “My guess is because they want their evasive answers not saved for posterity.”
He speculated that the White House may think its responses to reporters’ questions are more palatable when not recorded.
“That is the only conclusion one could draw,” Acosta said. “That when they give us answers, that it somehow reads better in print than it could be seen on television or heard over the radio.”
“Maybe I’m old-fashioned,” he added, “but I think that the White House for the United States of America should have these questions answered on camera so we can see what they’re saying.”
With regard to Spicer’s own penchant for evasive answers, Acosta added: “The White House press secretary is getting to a point, Brooke, where he is just kind of useless.”
He accused the White House of “stonewalling” reporters.
“If he can’t come out and answer the questions, and they’re just not going to do this on camera or audio, why are we even having these briefings or these gaggles in the first place?” Acosta asked. “It’s bizarre. I don’t know what world we’re living in right now.”
“The White House Press Secretary is getting to a point where he is kind of useless”- @Acosta https://t.co/6BxSrbCDDy
— Brooke Baldwin (@BrookeBCNN) June 19, 2017
One outfit needs to hire a helluva fiction writer to add color commentary…even better the winner of the godawful beginning sentence of the year award. It would go viral in a heartbeat!
I know we say this over and over again but imagine if a President Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders did this.
What would Republicans be saying and doing?
This is part of the pattern but it is actually good. They smell the end coming and don’t want to face it.
The “end” may not come for another year or so.
I don’t even want to imagine the damage they can do in the meantime.
Of course RT is allowed their recorders.