Reporters to Meet with White House on Credentialing

Reporters to Meet with White House on Credentialing

White House Correspondents Association debates how to police their ranks.

A snippet from near the end of the article:

Hutcheson said he was hesitant to start barring reporters from the White House unfairly. "My overarching view is that we should be advocates for getting people in the briefing room, not keep them out," he said. "But [the briefings] are an opportunity to get information, not make political statements."

As for Guckert, Hutcheson said Talon News' link to a political party definitely "calls into question his legitimacy as a journalist." But he also argued that reports that Guckert had helped set up several sex Web sites should have no bearing on his access to the president.

"Too much is being made out of it," Hutcheson said. "You should take out the porn connection. That has nothing to do with anything. Playboy has naked women, but they have done some damn good journalism. It is the journalistic endeavor that should be looked at."

Why is the Valerie Plame connection to Talon News still invisible at the WHCA level? Will Hustler feel left out after Playboy was referenced by the head of White House Correspondents Associate as having 'damn good journalism'?

But the more fun question is this. Are these the sort of journalists being encouraged to apply for White House Correspondant creditials? Are they secretly hoping for a Hefner or Flynt to apply to spice up the meetings?