The New York Times, CNN, Politico, LA Times and BuzzFeed were all barred from the gaggle. The Associated Press and Time boycotted the conference in solidarity with their banned colleagues.
This refusal to allow certain publications to participate in a press conference is unprecedented. It has not occurred under any other presidential administration. The media reacted unfavorably across many platforms.
CNN called the ban “unacceptable.” Dean Baquet, executive editor of The New York Times, said nothing like this has ever happened in the paper’s history, as the Times has always had an important place in White House reportage. The Committee to Protect Journalists is highly concerned. Marty Baron, an editor at The Washington Post, said barring certain institutions from the conference is “appalling.”
The exclusion of certain press from participation isn’t the main issue here, though it’s disturbing and concerning. The real danger of the Trump administration is their exclusion of any press in the first place.
Fair coverage from all sides is absolutely necessary for any presidential administration and becomes vital when the country is presented with such a controversial commander in chief.
Freedom of the press cannot, and should not, be compromised by any president. The Trump administration has now actively prevented NYT/CNN/Politico/LA Times readers from educating themselves. That is one of our first rights as citizens and news consumers.
As a future journalist (and current student journalist), the Trump administration’s actions are terrifying. We were told the practice and process of political reportage would change with Trump, but I didn’t expect this level of change. Maybe more seasoned journalists did, but this is so unprecedented, so new, that it seems hard to believe. The ban aligns with the administration’s actions towards press on the campaign trail, but Friday’s events are still shocking.
The News-Letter doesn’t send reporters to the White House, but we do cover political sentiment on campus and follow the same ethical guidelines as major papers. I’m sure what happened this past Friday was horrifying to my colleagues as well.
We all care deeply about the future of journalism, that’s why we invest so much of our time into this paper every week. We take any threat to future journalism seriously.
The News-Letter acts as this campus’s primary historical record. In a time where the president’s actions are akin to “a dictatorship,” according to The Newspaper Guild, our responsibilities as a record have shifted. The stakes are higher.
The dynamic of journalism everywhere, on the national or campus level, has changed. Our feelings about our future have changed.
Not everyone on The News-Letter will go on to a career in journalism. Most of us are not destined for a life at the Post or the Times. But we’re all committed to upholding journalists’ rights as long as we have a career on campus.
We are all passionate about journalism as an industry, profession and craft. That’s part of what makes our staff so close — we’re united by our ideals.
As for me, a career in journalism is exactly what I want, and what’s happening to journalists and publications now will have a direct impact on my career trajectory. The consequences caused by the actions of the Trump administration will probably unfold in ways we cannot imagine.
That’s why we at The News-Letter, and students on campus papers across the country and world, need to take the same determination that has led us to relentlessly cover our own University for years and apply it to our practices going forward.
Now is not the time to back down or let fear consume us. Now is the time to fight back, be diligent and to continue being great journalists.
