More than 440 reporters have lost their hard press passes as the White House recently implemented new requirements for obtaining them.
Interestingly, many in the corporate news sphere have remained silent on this matter, in stark contrast to the uproar that ensued when CNN's Jim Acosta lost his pass in 2018.
The rule change was implemented in May, with emails sent to members of the White House press corps. Portions of the email were shared on Twitter by Simon Ateba, Chief White House Correspondent for Today News Africa.
According to the email, all "press hard passes [would] expire on July 31," and journalists would need to "request renewal of [their] current hard pass." The "hard pass" grants extended access to the White House press corps, bypassing the need for a day-pass application.
Since the implementation of these new rules and the subsequent reduction in access to the White House press room, the number of reporters with such access has dropped by 31 percent over the past three months. This means that there are now 442 fewer reporters with hard pass access.
What is particularly noteworthy is the relative silence from major news corporations regarding this issue, especially when compared to their reaction when former President Donald Trump barred Jim Acosta from the press room. The corporate media seemed to be in a state of frenzy back then.
CNN, despite having previously filed a lawsuit when Acosta's pass was revoked, has not published any articles advocating for the press to retain their passes in light of the new rules.
NPR, for instance, only covered the topic of hard passes at the White House when CNN sued the Trump Administration over Acosta's suspension.
The New York Times celebrated when Acosta had his pass restored, but interestingly, the publication recently published a critical piece targeting Simon Ateba, who expressed similar concerns about pass revocation. The New York Times has yet to comment on the increasing number of journalists losing their passes.
Under the new rules, journalists who receive a hard pass must be full-time employees of a news organization, reside in the DC area, and regularly cover the White House. Additionally, the White House has granted itself more flexibility to remove journalists who fail to "act in a professional manner."
Login