Learning From the Shrubbery
Canadian Broadcasting has a story about the media relations of their new Prime Minister: Harper says he’s finished with Ottawa press corps
Since becoming prime minister in January, Harper has had a testy relationship with the national media in Ottawa. His staff has tried to manage news conferences by saying they will decide which reporters get to ask questions.
The press gallery has refused to play by those rules. “We can’t accept that the Prime Minister’s Office would decide who gets to ask questions,” Yves Malo, a TVA reporter and president of the press gallery, told CP on Tuesday. “Does that mean that when there’s a crisis they’ll only call upon journalists they expect softball questions from?”
On Tuesday about two dozen Ottawa reporters walked out on a Harper event when he refused to take their questions.
That led Harper to say that from now on he will speak only to local media.
Ah, yes: “avoiding the filter to speak directly to the people” was how the Shrubbery put it.
4 comments
Hats off to the reporters for walking out.
Can you imagine Chimpy’s face if the White House Press Corpse did the same to him?
That would take a commodity in extremely short supply among American journalists – intellectual courage.
I listen to CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) Radio Two in the office and the news coverage of this has been interesting; you can almost hear the smirk in the voice of the newsreader as they report this story.
I’m getting the feeling that the bloom is off the Harper government. That’s what you get for emulating Bush.
That happens when the media isn’t dependent on corporations for their existence.