A White House press aide accidentally forwarded an email criticizing a Daily Beast reporter to the entire White House Press corps.
Daily Beast reporter Zachary Petrizzo sent an email to the press corps Tuesday afternoon that read “the briefing has been PUSHED til 3:30 p.m…” A White House press aide appears to have accidentally forwarded an email making fun of Petrizzo.
“Why does he type like this. Why,” the email reads.
An inadvertent style note on capitalized pool reports from the White House press office: pic.twitter.com/hhTXNvwLIb
— Philip Melanchthon Wegmann (@PhilipWegmann) July 5, 2022
Seventy journalists recently signed a letter to press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre requesting increased access to traditional White House venues and key events.
Reporters asked that traditional venues and major events on the grounds be reopened after having been largely restricted throughout the Biden administration. (RELATED: ‘What Are You Afraid Of?’: Reporter Asks Biden Why He Won’t Answer Questions From The Press)
“The current method of allowing a limited number of reporters into these events is not only restrictive and antithetical to the concept of a free press, but it has been done without any transparent process into how reporters are selected to cover these events,” the letter read. “We are all left wondering who is making these decisions and what are the criteria on which they are based?”
The letter also demanded President Joe Biden allow reporters to personally interact with him without having to fill out a request prior to the event.
U.S. President Joe Biden speaks prior to awarding Medals of Honor to U.S. Army veterans who fought in the Vietnam War, during a ceremony in the East Room at the White House in Washington, U.S., July 5, 2022. REUTERS/Kevin Lamarque
“The incongruity of these restrictions underscores the belief by many reporters that the administration seeks to limit access to the president by anyone outside of the pool, or anyone who might ask a question the administration doesn’t want to answer,” the letter read. “Let us be candid. Our job is not to be liked, nor is it to be concerned about whether or not you like what we ask. A reporter’s ability to question the most powerful man in our government shouldn’t be discretionary.”
“The administration’s continued efforts to limit access to the president cannot be defended.”