The White House refused to reveal what process they use to credential journalists into presidential events, dodging the Daily Caller’s question repeatedly on Tuesday.
The White House team usually restricts who gets access to President Joe Biden’s public events by requiring reporters — who usually get access to White House press grounds — to fill out a credential form. Reporters have pressed the administration for answers on how they pick the journalists that get close to the president, but the White House has never publicly addressed their credentialing system.
The South Court Auditorium, one of the smaller venues where Biden gives remarks, has partially been a cause of headaches for reporters from right-leaning outlets who have been denied access. The Daily Caller and other conservative outlets in the White House briefing room have repeatedly been banned without explanation, despite there being dozens of seats available. (RELATED: White House Continues To Restrict Press Access To Biden Events, Leaves Empty Seats)
The Daily Caller pressed the White House to be transparent on whether they have a process on who gets inside.
A White House official refused to answer the question but told the Caller that reporters are denied access due to space restrictions.
“There are roughly 50 seats in South Court, and depending on the event, not all of them are always available or offer an unobstructed view. Yesterday, we credentialed 50 reporters to the event, but did not have room to accommodate about two dozen others. When the event began, not all 50 reporters who were credentialed showed up,” the White House official said.
The Caller again asked if there was a specific process on how they determine which reporters get credentialed.
The White House did not provide a direct answer.
“Every event is different, but no matter what the venue or setup, we always try to credential as many reporters into the room as possible. We’ve also been able to substantially increase the number of credentialed press in events on campus as COVID cases have decreased,” the White House official said.
The official then refused to answer any more questions by not replying to inquiries.
Daily Caller
Reporters have previously called out the administration for a lack of transparency on credentialing, Biden’s rare press conferences and apparently scripted answers to pre-determined questions. (RELATED: White House Demands Media ‘Comply,’ Hauls Specific Reporters Out Of Biden’s UFO Brief)
White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre has maintained that Biden “regularly” takes questions from the press at different locations.
In April, she claimed the number of informal Q&A sessions Biden has engaged in with the press has been “more than the last three presidents”
“It’s more than Presidents Trump; it’s more than Obama — Obama — combined,” Jean-Pierre said.
She claimed her team got the statistic by counting the “number of questions,” but the White House quietly amended the official transcript to say the number of “question-and-answer sessions.”