There’s always been a natural rift between photographers and print reporters. As photographers position themselves at press conferences on Capitol Hill and the White House with gear that’s often cumbersome, it’s not unusual to a see a fight break out, either verbal or physical, as photogs and scribes seek primo spaces for themselves in relation to their subjects. Red carpets, in particular, can be incredible shit shows.
In Washington, the subjects range from those who just think they’re important and deserve a gaggle to the actual press-worthy public figure like President Obama.
In a White House Pool Report Thursday from Politico‘s Carrie Budoff Brown, she expressed her annoyance with loud cameras that prevented her from getting the information she needed.
“The pope and the president continued to offer greetings as they sat down at the desk. The click of the cameras were quite loud, making it hard to hear their exchanges, though the pool was able to listen back to a recording by an AP Rome correspondent. (see previous pool report for quotes)”
As a previous White House pooler explained to The Mirror, “I’ve had similar experiences during my pool duty days where the pool will walk into a tight space and try to record the president’s comments when he’s not wearing a microphone. And half a dozen cameras will start making the sound of a small motor, meaning that I get nothing on my rinky-dink recorder. Seriously, in the digital age, why do cameras have to click?”
But not everyone is offended or irked by loud camera clicks. A current White House reporter said he didn’t really give a crap: “I want reporters to be more aggressive, so why should I complain about a few irritating clicks?”
