President Donald Trump’s favorite online “news” source is steaming mad. And yes, the quotes are completely purposeful. Notorious conservative website and Steve Bannon pet project Breitbart was denied permanent Senate press credentials this week.
The Standing Committee of the Senate Press Gallery is the body that decides which media outlets get the permanent stamp, and they were not too impressed with Breitbart’s reporting history. They cited the website’s failure to demonstrate editorial independence from key supporters of Donald Trump, and voiced concerns that Bannon had not properly disconnected himself from the site’s control and content. They are asking for more information from Breitbart with an April 14 deadline.
Despite what the president might think, there are actual rules that media outlets need to abide by to get Senate press credentials. For example, Breitbart would need to show that they practice:
“Daily dissemination of original news and opinion of interest to a broad segment of the public …. editorially independent of any institution, foundation or interest group that lobbies the federal government.”
When it comes to Breitbart, the Association isn’t so sure.
Well, who cares about a Senate Press Pass, huffs the Trump supporter. It’s actually a very important step for digital media sources to gain credibility in the D.C. press circle. Steven Perlberg of BuzzFeed explains:
“For newer outlets in Washington, winning permanent congressional press passes is a tedious process — but an important one. The hard passes are seen as the first step towards joining the White House Correspondents’ Association, where member news organizations rotate their reporters to travel with the president at home and abroad. Reporters also use the hard passes to get into other events around Washington.”
So for now, Breitbart’s press credentials are in limbo. And if organizations like Media Matters get their way, that’s exactly where they’ll stay.
Watch a fairly eye-opening interview with a Breitbart senior editor here:
Featured Image By Emil Lendof Via The Daily Beast.
