A protest sprung up at one of President Obama’s fundraisers and a reporter assigned as a “print reporter” whipped out her phone to catch it on video. Apparently, that’s a no-no, even with the king of new media. With Obama, everything is a one way street.
The San Francisco Chronicle folks do not sound happy.
The hip, transparent and social media-loving Obama administration is showing its analog roots. And maybe even some hypocrisy highlights.
White House officials have banished one of the best political reporters in the country from the approved pool of journalists covering presidential visits to the Bay Area for using now-standard multimedia tools to gather the news.
The Chronicle’s Carla Marinucci – who, like many contemporary reporters, has a phone with video capabilities on her at all times – pulled out a small video camera last week and shot some protesters interrupting an Obama fundraiser at the St. Regis Hotel.
She was part of a “print pool” – a limited number of journalists at an event who represent their bigger hoard colleagues – which White House press officials still refer to quaintly as “pen and pad” reporting.
But that’s a pretty Flintstones concept of journalism for an administration that presents itself as the Jetsons. Video is every bit a part of any journalist’s tool kit these days as a functioning pen that doesn’t leak through your pocket.
Follow the link for the offending video and the rest of the story.
Update: Memeorandum now has a thread and linked.
Best comment so far: “This is like the girl under the bleachers finding out on Monday that the quarterback can’t remember her name.”
At last everybody except the professional left is getting the message loud and clear, although it’s probably too late for the Chron, which will slide beneath the waves unmourned before it recovers from being used.
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[...] fundraisers will be off limits except for a small pool of print reporters. And they better not try taping her with their iPhones.google_ad_client = "pub-1395656889568144"; /* 300×250, created 8/11/08 */ google_ad_slot = [...]
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