Press Conference... Staged, Directed, Defused ?

05-15-2009, 06:07 AM

Robert Gibbs was being grilled by reporters a couple of days ago. Apparently he was sinking in action. Then, a reporter's phone rang - and it was conferencus interuptus - Gibb's confiscated it like a 4th grade student's water pistol. It looked like a knucklehead move, but he was up for air.

I haven't seen the whole press conference. Did anyone?

One blogger I read said this (vids here too):
http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/...ing_116433.asp
I saw this live yesterday. Gibbs was a flailing, drowning man being circled by the media sharks. One of the few times the press were actually doing their jobs. Each answer he gave was pure jibberish. Then the phones started ringing. The momentem of the questions was broken and the subjects asked were changed. It now appears that the white house was doing the calling to the reporters. Compare it to a basketball timeout when the opposing team is on a run. Gibbs even knew the subject of Plante's call. SCOTUS nominee. Were certain members of the press in on the plan to interrrupt the briefing if it goes badly? A great story if there was a real journalist in the room.

05-15-2009, 06:07 AM	#1
no caste Guest Posts: n/a	Press Conference... Staged, Directed, Defused ? Robert Gibbs was being grilled by reporters a couple of days ago. Apparently he was sinking in action. Then, a reporter's phone rang - and it was conferencus interuptus - Gibb's confiscated it like a 4th grade student's water pistol. It looked like a knucklehead move, but he was up for air. I haven't seen the whole press conference. Did anyone? One blogger I read said this (vids here too): http://www.mediabistro.com/tvnewser/...ing_116433.asp I saw this live yesterday. Gibbs was a flailing, drowning man being circled by the media sharks. One of the few times the press were actually doing their jobs. Each answer he gave was pure jibberish. Then the phones started ringing. The momentem of the questions was broken and the subjects asked were changed. It now appears that the white house was doing the calling to the reporters. Compare it to a basketball timeout when the opposing team is on a run. Gibbs even knew the subject of Plante's call. SCOTUS nominee. Were certain members of the press in on the plan to interrrupt the briefing if it goes badly? A great story if there was a real journalist in the room. Last edited by no caste; 05-15-2009 at 06:16 AM.