Perhaps President Joe Biden wasn’t actually joking when he told a group of elementary school students back in October that one of his jobs was to “avoid” answering questions coming from members of the activist media. During his visit, he said, “[Reporters] get to ask you all kinds of questions, and you try to figure out how you’re gonna avoid answering them sometimes.”
Many have criticized Biden for his refusal to allow reporters to ask him questions. Many on the right have repeatedly pointed out how the activist media would react if former President Donald Trump had avoided the press as frequently as the current president.
While media activists have issued criticism of Biden’s avoidance, the comments were rather tepid in nature. In a previous piece, I wrote:
Even CNN chimed in, noting that the interview Biden gave to ABC’s George Stephanopoulos “was only the 9th one Biden has done with a media organization since being sworn in as president seven months ago.”
The piece also points out that by this time in their presidencies, Barack Obama had given 133 interviews, and Donald Trump had given 50.
I also pointed out that at that point, the only time the media actually criticized Biden for his apparent lack of transparency was during the migrant crisis when the White House refused to allow reporters in detention facilities that were housing migrants and unaccompanied minors. This was occurring amid widespread criticism of his handling of the situation at the border and the treatment of those being detained in facilities.
In September, RedState’s Sister Toldjah also wrote about reporters complaining about the lack of access to the president. She wrote:
Both Bloomberg News senior reporter Jennifer Jacobs and CBS News reporter Kathryn Watson also noted in photo tweets that Biden didn’t take questions when he returned to the White House earlier today (shortly before lunch?) after spending a few days on vacation at Rehoboth Beach nor when he left for a trip to New York City.
But most recently, we reported on a reporter shouting a very important question at the president as he walked away from a press briefing. CBS News White House Correspondent Steven Portnoy asked Biden, “when will you answer our questions, sir,” as Biden walked away from the podium after delivering remarks on the economy.
“When will you answer our questions, sir?” @stevenportnoy asks as the president ignores reporters at end of economic remarks. pic.twitter.com/gdwKSGvl9N
— Alex Leary (@learyreports) November 23, 2021
Biden’s constant avoidance of the press has become one of the overarching themes of his presidency. On multiple occasions, he has walked out of press briefings without taking questions. He flees from questioning like Michael Moore from a garden salad. In many cases, he has become upset with reporters for pressing him too hard.
This behavior was particularly evident during his botched Afghanistan withdrawal effort. In one instance he rudely rebuffed a reporter questioning him about the situation.
Biden calls on a reporter following remarks about #HurricaneIda and the reporter asks him about his disaster in Afghanistan.
Biden immediately states he doesn't want to talk about Afghanistan and walks away. 13 U.S. troops were killed after a chaotic situation Biden caused. pic.twitter.com/mmNPlpciLZ
— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) August 29, 2021
This is just one of several instances in which the president has become angry because of being questioned. It is rather ironic given the fact that the activist media has been serving as his ministry of propaganda ever since he took office – it isn’t as if they’re asking tough questions for the most part.
However, the fact that Biden gets away with dodging the press is because he knows he will never be held accountable. So far, he has only received the mildest of criticism from the activist media for his brazen effort to avoid transparency. It was only during the Afghanistan fiasco that the media actually did their jobs and spoke truth to power. But predictably, that was short-lived.
The reality is that while Biden’s lack of transparency might be frustrating for members of the press, it is not a big enough deal that they would actually start criticizing him in earnest. He is still their president, and they will still defend him dearly.
But in the end, it will only serve to further discredit the Fourth Estate, which is already lacking in trust. Every year they remove the mask even more, and it does not appear they will alter their course anytime soon. But on the positive side, at least this will further diminish their influence as more people recognize they are not watching journalists — they are watching left-wing activists.
