Troubling News, Trump Continues to Ditch Press

President-elect Donald Trump ditched his press pool again Nov. 15 to go out to dinner without the media.

The presidential press pool, a group of designated journalists that follow the president and pass current information on his doings to the rest of the media, is a long standing tradition Trump seems intent on avoiding.

While it’s understandable he might want a nice quiet dinner, Trump has long been a public figure. With his recent election victory, being a constant focus of the media is no longer simply a matter of privacy – it is now about transparency as well. 

While his spokeswoman Hope Hicks has said Trump will be cooperating with a pool, his recent actions suggest that cooperation will be begrudgingly given.

Throughout his campaign, Trump harassed and maligned reporters that presented him negatively (e.g. Megyn Kelly) and barred some from covering his campaign events. 

In a troubling continuance of his hostility to the press, directly after his election Trump refused journalists access to his first meeting with President Obama.

The media creates an unofficial record of events – some news articles are considered admissible in court. By not allowing journalists to follow him, Trump is both obscuring important historical moments for future generations and delaying giving the present public knowledge of his presidential agenda. An agenda many would very much like the details on. 

Members of the White House Correspondent Association have also expressed concern about keeping the public in the loop in the event of a national crisis, including threats to the president’s life.

“A pool of reporters and photographers was in the motorcade when President John F. Kennedy was shot and killed in Dallas,” said a Nov. 10 article by the Associated Press.

Even before his election and recent decisions to exclude journalists from his entourage, both conservative and liberal reporters had misgivings about Trump’s attitude towards the media. 

The very first constitutional amendment covers freedom of religion, expression, assembly and the right to petition. There is a long tradition of free speech, press and the ability to have differing opinions in the U.S.

Trump’s statements about race, immigration and Islam may concern liberals. His dismissal of the press, however, should concern all regardless of political leanings. Limiting a free press sets a dangerous precedent to limiting government transparency with the public or, worse, the freedom of expression many of us treasure.