President Joe Biden has faced criticism for his ongoing practice of avoiding tough interviews with the press and instead opting for more relaxed celebrity interviews. Prior to his elegant fundraiser in Manhattan on Thursday, the president engaged in another conversation with actor Jason Bateman on the Smartless podcast, where he was joined by former Presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton. Co-hosts Will Arnett and Sean Hayes were also in attendance.
“Number of times Jason Bateman has done a sit-down interview with President Biden: 2. Nearly every print reporter who covers the White House: 0,” Politico White House reporter Jennifer Haberkorn said on X.
According to Mediaite, “Haberkorn’s observation was retweeted by a number of her peers, such as The Independent’s Andrew Feinberg, The New Republic‘s Grace Segers, The Daily Beast’s Corbin Bolies, The Washington Post‘s Annah Aschbrenner, and Fox News’ Lucas Tomlinson.”
Number of times Jason Bateman has done a sit-down interview with President Biden: 2
Nearly every print reporter who covers the White House: 0 https://t.co/zjE3PmN1XI— Jennifer Haberkorn (@jenhab) March 29, 2024
From left to right: Jason Bateman, Barack Obama, Will Arnett, Joe Biden, Sean Hayes, Bill Clinton
The three presidents taped an interview for the actors’ @SmartLess podcast ahead of a “record-breaking” fundraiser tonight in NYC
📸 via Biden for President pic.twitter.com/PvJvNvfi1i
— Libby Cathey (@libbycathey) March 28, 2024
The president has gained a notoriety for evading the White House press corps, frequently deferring to press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre while maintaining a noticeable absence. His avoidance of press interactions became such a concern that even the Washington Post publicly criticized him for it in an article published last year.
“In his first two-and-a-half years as president, Biden has held fewer news conferences than his predecessors. He has given fewer interviews to major news organizations, despite his promise to restore traditional press relations after the Trump era,” it noted
“At the same time, the White House is contacting an array of online influencers, social media personalities, TikTok stars and other nontraditional figures to spread its message, creating an alternative communication network that is different from previous presidencies,” it added.