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Scandal in the Press Corps (Jeff Gannon)
Washington Post ^ | Feb. 10, 2005 | Dan Froomkin

Posted on 02/10/2005 11:33:49 AM PST by QQQQQ

Pretty much every day, Gannon got cleared into the White House briefing room by a press office that knew his real name. Press Secretary Scott McClellan frequently called on him during the mid-day briefings, using his fake name. McClellan was consistently rewarded with questions that -- in stark contrast from most of what passes for questions in that room -- were more expressions of conservative dogma than actual attempts to elicit information. Members of the press corps individually confronted Gannon and told him that he didn't belong there. But nothing more serious than that happened -- until Bush called on him at his televised Jan. 26 news conference and he asked a loaded, inaccurate question partly derived from a Rush Limbaugh joke.

In the ensuing days, liberal Web sites and an army of bloggers determined his real name, called attention to his lack of journalistic credentials, found a link to gay porn Web sites, pointed out how that ran afoul of his "family values" positions, and apparently hounded him into resigning.

Brooks writes: "Bloggers also discovered that several gay pornographic domain names had been registered through his domain.

"Guckert said he registered those domain names for a client while he was working to set up a Web hosting business in Wilmington.

" 'There are people out there who will turn people's lives inside out,' Guckert said. 'They tried to intimidate me, punish me. Then they tried to embarrass me, and they've done a pretty good job of that.' "

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: Extended News; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: gannon; jeffgannon; msm
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It's a long article, gives a synopsis and quotes several of the many articles on the topic.

Note, that the press corps, who are so much in favor of "free speech", as long as it's the Ward Churchill type, are going to great lengths to stifle even one conservative question out of the many attack questions.

Tim Graham, also quoted in the above article, said:

"He added: "The White House press corps is not supposed to be a gang beating. It's supposed to present White House comment on the news of the day. Are the people really served by seventeen phrasings of the same attack question? Are they harmed by one question on a topic conservatives are interested in?"

1 posted on 02/10/2005 11:33:49 AM PST by QQQQQ
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To: QQQQQ
Yeah, yeah, yeah. And a major network tried to affect a national election by using counterfeit documents. Terry Moran, ABC "news" man asks a fake, loaded question about Jordanian human rights abuses. And Helen Thomas, shill for Liberal news organizations, is kept on as a White House correspondent--despite all evidence points to her as a Clinton butt-kisser.

Where is the Washington Post on these stories? Nowhere.

2 posted on 02/10/2005 11:36:59 AM PST by Recovering_Democrat (I'm so glad to no longer be associated with the Party of Dependence on Government!)
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To: QQQQQ

I wouldn't actually advocate this, but it would be pretty funny if the White House did super extensive background and tracking of all the WH reporters and started disqualifying them because of their skeletons in the closet.


3 posted on 02/10/2005 11:37:01 AM PST by blanknoone (Steyn: "The Dems are all exit and no strategy")
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To: QQQQQ

Still waiting for the WP to cover Easongate.


4 posted on 02/10/2005 11:37:18 AM PST by Semper Paratus
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To: QQQQQ

The answer is simple - revoke the passes of everyone!

Then reissue passes to moderate/conversative reporters. (period)

Why, MSM did not win the election. Therefore, they do not represent the viewpoint of the majority!

There would still be news coverage - but Fair and Balanced.
No Alan Colmes or Juan Williams types need apply.


5 posted on 02/10/2005 11:37:32 AM PST by Prost1 (The Democrats hate Emancipation! They cannot control the vote!)
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To: QQQQQ

Thomas Jefferson kept a newspaperman on the State Department payroll, who performed no work at the State Dept. He then published editorials favorable to Jefferson and which also attacked Alexander Hamilton.

I still waiting to hear some sort of condemnation of this conduct on the part of Jefferson.


6 posted on 02/10/2005 11:37:51 AM PST by ambrose (...)
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To: QQQQQ

"Members of the press corps individually confronted Gannon and told him that he didn't belong there."

well now, that pretty much confirms what sort of mentality goes on there.


7 posted on 02/10/2005 11:37:53 AM PST by Pikamax
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To: QQQQQ
Guckert said he registered those domain names for a client while he was working to set up a Web hosting business in Wilmington.

Who is Guckert?

8 posted on 02/10/2005 11:38:19 AM PST by frogjerk
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To: SheLion

FYI ping!


9 posted on 02/10/2005 11:38:24 AM PST by Mears ("Call me irresponsible")
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To: QQQQQ

This does more to show the liberal bias inthe bews than Gannon could have done alone.

Looks like he had to take one for the team, but their bias in 'investigating' a journalist is apparent.

When was the last time they 'investigated' a liberal journalist? Why did they not come down this hard on pedophile Scott Ritter?


10 posted on 02/10/2005 11:38:25 AM PST by Mr. K (<a href="http://www.RusThompson.com">http://www.RusThompson.com<a>)
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To: QQQQQ

If you go to Google news, then click on the link to this article, you can see the entire article, without logging into the WP:

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&ned=us&ie=UTF-8&q=scandal+press+corps&btnG=Search+News


11 posted on 02/10/2005 11:38:41 AM PST by QQQQQ
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To: frogjerk
Who is Guckert?

Guckert is Gannon's real name. Not sure why anyone here is still calling him Gannon.

12 posted on 02/10/2005 11:40:19 AM PST by Strategerist
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To: frogjerk

Guckert=Gannon. Gannon was a pseudonym used by Guckert.


13 posted on 02/10/2005 11:40:52 AM PST by QQQQQ
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To: QQQQQ
And please don't go with the Helen Thomas most extreme examples. Every other reporter's questions are phrased from a liberal democrat point of view, David Gregory (Curious George) being one of the most offensive. "Mr. President, can you understand why, when you hate the poor etc yada yada yada, many people are afraid of you, call you a polarizer, etc yada yada yada ....."

This whole Gannon thing equals what? His questions were from a conservative persepective. Ok, that reflects 50% plus of the American electorate.

I can't sort out the possible gay website business. If legal, what would it have to do with his questions as a reporter?

The part about reporters telling Gannon he "doesn't belong there" is very interesting. What a hateful bunch of left wing jerks.

14 posted on 02/10/2005 11:41:10 AM PST by Williams
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To: Pikamax
"Members of the press corps individually confronted Gannon and told him that he didn't belong there."

well now, that pretty much confirms what sort of mentality goes on there

According to the above from the Wash Compost it seems the vast majority of the White House press corp never got out of high school, and yuck(for lack of a better term), helen thomas is their head cheerleader.

15 posted on 02/10/2005 11:42:34 AM PST by Dane ( anyone who believes hillary would do something to stop illegal immigration is believing gibberish)
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To: Mr. K

Also, they only investigate far enough to get something that sounds damaging. But, as usual, don't tell the full truth.

Gannon/Guckert said, that at some point he ran a domain registry business, and one of his client registered those name, not him, and he had nothing to do with the sites.


16 posted on 02/10/2005 11:43:01 AM PST by QQQQQ
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To: QQQQQ

It is too bad this guy quit---I know why he did, compared to him Bernie Kerik was given a ticker tape parade--

The dem reporters like Moran have been trying to get Bush to say he lied about WMDS and say he made a mistake for 3 years---I can't stand the press briefings because it is all "gotcha" journalism.

One guy asks a question from the "right" point of view and is literally "ruined" and run out of town. I saw a thread that said that Daschle's aides were cheering last night when they found out he quit, well of course they would because they have no class like the rest of the dems.

I guess "Free speech" doesn't apply to reporters that ask questions favorable to President Bush.


17 posted on 02/10/2005 11:43:24 AM PST by Txsleuth (Proud to be a Texan)
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To: Mr. K

"Another Gannon in the Wings?

Blogger Atrios asks: "Gannon leaves, and is magically replaced with GannonBot Mark II (or is it KinsolvingBot Mark III?)."

He was citing this question from yesterday's briefing:

"Q Does this administration believe the Democratic leaders are now engaged in a deliberate disinformation campaign as the best way to undermine the President's goals and objectives on a number of issues?"

I'm told the question came from about the sixth row, but no one I talked to seemed to know who he was.

Incidentally, nobody at the briefing had any questions about Gannon. "


Wait.. This is not a legit question?


18 posted on 02/10/2005 11:43:51 AM PST by Pikamax
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To: Williams

"The part about reporters telling Gannon he "doesn't belong there" is very interesting. What a hateful bunch of left wing jerks."

And that was BEFORE anything about him came out -- they hated him, because he was not attacking Bush, as all the rest of the reporters were.


19 posted on 02/10/2005 11:44:34 AM PST by QQQQQ
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To: QQQQQ

If Gannon/Guckert was involved with gay prostitute websites, then I'm damn glad they ran him out of town!!!


20 posted on 02/10/2005 11:44:37 AM PST by pissant
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