Hindsight is 20/20...
The current revelations about Gannon in the press briefings puts these (pre-war) articles about the shenanigans in the WHPB in a new light. In the audio from the press gaggle, you hear a reporter asking a question out of turn and Bush tells him "this is scripted" and then continues on next reporter on his list. The next day, Ari Fleischer admitted twice that "the President's staff preselected which reporters to call, and the order". CSPAN 3/7/2003 archive - at [20:50]
WTF, corporate media!!! This was an huge issue back then and you dropped the ball. WaPo wrote about the farce of a WHPB then, but when you find out the extent of the sham.. You are silent!
Please, re-read these TWO YEAR OLD articles in the light of Gannon / Guckert revelations.
http://www.kuro5hin.org/story/2003/3/8/12559/73819
Unfortunately, when members of the press core pool are selected by White House staff, and further when the White House staff preselects for the President exactly who will be called upon during a formal press conference, 'sustained questioning' and 'spontaneity' are the last words one can use to describe the process. Does setting such a precedent further diminish a Free Press in the United States?
We now know the answer to this.. YES!
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A53542-2003Mar6.html
White House Communications Director Dan Bartlett: [T]his White House uses news conferences more sparingly than other types of presidential events, because "if you have a message you're trying to deliver, a news conference can go in a different direction."
He further stated: "In this case, we know what the questions are going to be, and those are the ones we want to answer," Bartlett said. "We think the public will see the thought and care and attention he's given to a lot of the different questions that are being asked...."
http://www.buzzflash.com/analysis/03/03/07_scripted.html
Scripted Press Conferences and the Lapdog Media
March 7, 2003
As we have mentioned over the last two years, the Republican Party is so brazen in its hypocrisy, it will sometimes just openly brag about its duplicitousness.
....
Bush was scripted in more ways than just having an arranged list of reporters; he was clearly reading from a set of stock answers that were to be used to answer known questions.
Karl Rove knows that such a "packaged" event will guarantee that the White House mantra of deception is conveyed in the next day's papers. Calling the scripted Thursday night event a news conference is a bit like calling Ann Coulter a journalist -- neither claim is credible.
So, how can such a phony, staged production be deemed credible by the media? Well, as we know, the media, with few exceptions, is the chief enabler for the Bush Cartel. They are really just a megaphone for White House lies and propaganda. The deal is that the White House gets to appear as if it is really serving the American people and the media shills get to pretend to be journalists.
Why was it so obvious back then! All these questions still apply and this is why GANNON is important. Not for the single insult to a healthy democracy that Guckert represents, but look what two years has gotten us..
- How can such a phony, staged production be deemed credible by the media?
- Does setting such a precedent further diminish a Free Press in the United States?
Imagine what two more years will bring if the media doesn't start doing their job?! What really scares me is a pattern of media complacency that resulted in IRAQ. Should we all be worried about a repeat of March 2003? Is the media ignoring Guckert just more of the same? (Well, not exactly the same.. "Q" and "N")