Politico complains that competence, transparency, and truthfulness is making their job too hard
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While people in Ukraine are concerned about a brutal war with Russia, Politico is suffering in the battle against a different kind of opponent. It seems that transparency, truthfulness, and a daily process in which White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki stands there and actually answers questions with facts and competence are seriously screwing with their ability to pose as crusading journalists.
According to Politico, there’s just no opportunity to become a “star” by being a White House reporter these days. Sure, the nation has been dealing with a pandemic where the number of official deaths is about to crack 1 million, the administration launched an ambitious legislative agenda that has largely been stifled by the egos of just two senators, the United States is moving desperately to support an allied nation engaged in the biggest war in Europe since World War II, and the January 6 committee is regularly cranking out information that shows deep involvement of Republican officials from top to bottom in an attempted coup. A White House reporter just might be able to wring a narrative out of one of those little items. But only if that reporter was interested in doing 10 minutes’ worth of work.
During the age of Biden, a perch inside the James S. Brady Press Briefing Room has become something altogether different. It’s become a bore.
It’s almost as if now that no one is standing in front of the room sputtering out a string of nonsense syllables or handing out a list of easily punctured lies, journalists in the White House have to do journalism. They need to research, and write, and actually do word stuff. All of which seems a lot harder than deciding which part of their visit with Donald Trump/Mark Meadows/William Barr/Peter Navarro/Kellyanne Conway/Hope Hicks/Sarah Sanders/etc. they would simply hold back until they got that seven-figure book deal.
Perhaps nothing can sum up this whole deeply felt concern better than this single paragraph.
“Jen [Psaki] is very good at her job, which is unfortunate,” one reporter who has covered the past two administrations from the room said. “And the work is a lot less rewarding, because you’re no longer saving democracy from Sean Spicer and his Men’s Warehouse suit. Jawing with Jen just makes you look like an asshole.”
What this makes clear is that these would-be “star reporters” aren’t at all concerned about the truth. They’re certainly not interested in doing the kind of journalism that would take the information provided by Psaki and explain to the American people what kind of impact the issues being discussed have on their daily lives. Nope. These are people who want to look good in front of the camera. Spicer was a good prop for them to lean against so they could express their Very Serious Concerns. Psaki is not.
Why, when the economy is breaking records and the White House is working hard to give Americans not just what they promised but what poll after poll says America really wants, is Joe Biden’s approval rating so disconnected from those achievements? A big part of it comes down to this: Politico’s “stars” were never interested in giving Americans the facts, never interested in reporting on how policies shape the nation, never interested in journalism at all.
They just wanted an easy way to look good and a lazy path to stardom. That’s why they’re actively cheering for the return of lies, incompetency, and villainy. It’s so much easier that way.