There’s an impression among many that the highest-profile political reporters in DC aren’t tough enough because they’ve developed cozy relationships with powerful players. The idea is, big-time journalists won’t ask the tough questions on Thursday if they’ll be golfing with their subject on Saturday. I’ve never fully bought into these concerns, but there may be something to them after all.
The Washington Post’s Dan Froomkin had a terrific item in Salon today about how reporters should deal with a president who abhors questions from the press. A comment from Sam Donaldson stood out for me, with regards to the relationship issue.
[R]eporters shouldn’t be afraid to look a little disrespectful if that’s what it takes to get an answer. “This is not a social engagement, this is a business transaction. The president knows it’s business, believe me,” said Donaldson. Being aggressive carries a slight risk: “It makes your bosses nervous, when they think of all their relationships, including the state dinners they want to be invited to,” he said. “But I never had to worry that my boss would not back me, as long as I was doing something legitimate.”
It’s discouraging, but an important peek inside the DC political machine. Donaldson, who was once known for being pretty aggressive as ABC’s White House correspondent, actually had to worry about network executives who felt “nervous” about Donaldson being too tough, not because he’d appear unprofessional or lose access, but because they wanted invitations to glamorous state dinners. Amazing.
None of the current White House press corps would ever admit it on the record, but I wish Froomkin (or someone else) could poll these reporters and see how many of them feel similar kinds of pressure. It might give us a hint as to why the idea of an adversarial media seems to have disappeared.