- White House press secretary Jen Psaki tried to lower the temperature in the conference room.
- Psaki knows that the job requires tough questions and strives to get answers based on facts.
- “People should know that I won’t be a softie up there,” she told The Daily Beast.
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While the relationship between the White House press and presidential administrations is always somewhat antagonistic, former President Donald Trump’s relationship with the media was famous for its perpetual toxicity.
Since her debut almost three weeks ago, White House press secretary Jen Psaki has been trying to lower the temperature and focus on politics.
In an interview with The Daily Beast, Psaki recalled his first press conference, where he spoke to reporters in a collegial way, talking about “the role of a free and independent press in our democracy”.
This statement was a stark contrast to the rude personalities of former press secretaries like Sean Spicer, Sarah Huckabee Sanders and Kayleigh McEnany.
Psaki said he knows the job calls for difficult questions and appreciates the focus on the facts.
“That has certainly been my perspective throughout my career, and my goal was to return to the podium with precision and transparency,” said Psaki. “But also [to acknowledge that] there would be times of disagreement, and that was part of democracy, right? “
She added: “Information leaflets are back. We love the information leaflets here. Making politics modern again is our goal.”
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Psaki and the White House communications team are already receiving broadly positive reviews from the press, many of whom have grown accustomed to the Trump administration’s irregular briefings and e-mail responses.
“It is great to have a return to the briefings and a useful exchange with reporters to get your questions answered,” Associated Press White House reporter Zeke Miller told the Daily Beast. “But it’s not just about exchanging information; it’s about the powerful symbol that that forum sends around the world, but also in Washington – that the government is not exempt from questions from journalists. It is an important principle that is good to see.”
Yet, Psaki’s interaction with Politician Anita Kumar last week shows that the central dynamic of the press secretary’s role in backing down has not disappeared.
Psaki, who did not like the question asked about the relationship between President Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping, rebuked the White House correspondent.
“I don’t like to, like, put words in my mouth,” said Psaki to Kumar, who would have been surprised by the meeting.
“People should know that I won’t be a softie up there,” Psaki told The Daily Beast. “And I’m not going to allow people to put words in my mouth or misinterpret what I said. It is important to be clear, concrete and very specific, because you are still speaking on behalf of the government.”