Trump installs ‘Skype seats’ in White House press room
President Trump is continuing his disruptive approach to media briefings by adding ‘Skype seats’ to the White House press room in an effort to ‘diversify’ journalist representation.
White House press secretary Sean Spicer announced the move during a briefing, revealing that four video-link places will be made available in the briefing room from ‘later this week’.
Explaining the move Spicer says: “This will open up the briefing to journalists who live beyond 50 miles of the Washington, DC area and to organizations that don’t currently have a day pass.
“As always, any organization is welcome to apply for a day pass. But we’re excited to open up into the field and fold here a diverse group of journalists from around the country who may not have the convenience or funding to travel to Washington. I think this can benefit us all by giving a platform to voices that are not necessarily based here in the beltway.”
As yet detail remains scant on which journalists or news providers will be chosen to sit in the Skype positions.
Spicer has come under fire for his combative stance against the media at his first press conference during which he disputed photographic evidence of crowd numbers at Trump's inauguration.