White House clashes with press corps over ending the Associated Press's permanent seat in the traveling press pool to favor digital outlets.
The exchange made plain a growing fight between the White House and the Washington press corps over who controls access to the president. At issue is a long-standing convention of presidential journalism: whether proximity to the commander in chief should remain anchored by legacy institutions, or be reassigned at the discretion of the executive branch to digital outlets, podcasters, and independent commentators.
The sharpest disagreement concerned the administration’s move to end the Associated Press’s customary permanent seat in the White House traveling press pool. Allen asked whether sidelining the 179-year-old cooperative risked the completeness of the historical record. He cited AP photojournalist Evan Vucci’s Pulitzer-winning photograph of Donald Trump raising his fist after surviving the July 2024 assassination attempt in Butler, Pennsylvania.