The White House Correspondents’ Association, an autonomous entity responsible for allocating seating and managing interactions between the White House and the press corps, may contest the proposal.
Certain supporters of Trump expressed approval upon learning from Axios about the potential alterations to the seating chart on Sunday morning, interpreting it as yet another effort to curtail the influence of mainstream media and bolster openly pro-Trump opinion platforms.
Sean Spicer, who served as the initial press secretary during Trump’s first term, communicated with his successor Karoline Leavitt on X, stating, “I support this – continue the effort @PressSec.”
Several correspondents have indicated that a restructuring of the seating arrangement is expected, as the modifications will carry symbolic significance and be positively received by pro-Trump media organizations. Due to a lack of authorization from their employers to speak publicly, these sources provided information on the condition of anonymity.
A White House correspondent remarked, ‘The seating arrangement is not particularly significant. However, it becomes important when the White House seeks to exert control over an elected body to sway the nature of inquiries and the coverage of stories.’
The organization in question is the Correspondents’ Association, managed by a rotating board of journalists elected by their peers. A request for comments on the current status of the seating arrangement went unanswered by Eugene Daniels, the present president of the group.
Reports indicate that the association is considering various possible solutions. A key uncertainty remains whether the administration intends to merely adjust the seating assignments or to exclude certain prominent news organizations from their allocated positions.
Nonetheless, even a minor rearrangement could significantly impact the dynamics during Leavitt’s briefings. Currently, the front seats as per the association’s seating chart are occupied by journalists from the largest television networks, newswires, newspapers, and radio stations.
Additionally, several other esteemed news organizations have been assigned seats, with some alternating to allow 49 seats to accommodate over 60 outlets. The association updates the seating chart every few years to reflect changes in the media landscape.
As stated on its website, it also manages the allocation of “all booths and desks” within the White House workspace for the media. Since Trump resumed office in January, the association has faced severe criticism from the Trump administration.
Some correspondents allege that Trump aims to dismantle the organization entirely. In February, Trump barred The Associated Press, a cornerstone of White House reporting for over a century, from attending press conferences and other events.
Subsequently, Leavitt asserted that the White House would choose the reporters from the “press pool” accompanying the president on his travels and at smaller events, thereby stripping the association of its traditional role in pool management.
Recently, the White House has extended invitations to relatively low-rated television networks and hyperpartisan pro-Trump websites to participate in the press events. An employee from the far-right channel One America News recently disguised a compliment as a question during a press interaction.
The Defense Department’s so-called ‘rotation’ initiative, which displaced major news organizations such as NPR and CNN from their Pentagon offices in favor of smaller, staunchly pro-Trump media outlets, has set the stage for further changes for veteran correspondents.
Each disruption has consistently favored media coverage that aligns with the administration’s agenda rather than scrutinizing it. It is likely that right-wing podcasters and online content creators would be included in a Trump-led briefing seating arrangement, although the White House may face practical challenges.
Many conservative opinion hosts and pro-Trump figures with significant online followings do not reside in Washington, D.C., and may not be particularly motivated to attend press briefings. During the early stages of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, when the briefing room’s capacity was reduced for health reasons, CNN’s Kaitlan Collins was directed to exchange her front-row seat with a reporter seated in the back.
The White House ultimately relented after both reporters refused to comply. ‘There is a longstanding bipartisan tradition of the WHCA determining the seating arrangements in the briefing room,’ remarked Jonathan Karl, the association’s president at that time, emphasizing that ‘we will contest any attempts to selectively choose which outlets are present or how they are arranged.’