Obama's New Media Promotion Raises Eyebrows with White House Press Corps

True to the digital pioneering of his campaign years, President Barack Obama has embarked on a new digital media tour in recent weeks to advance his talking points and policy proposals, often with minimal pushback from his interviewers. In many cases the media outlets have used their production tools to aid Obama in promoting his image, record and initiatives. But the interviews are raising eyebrows among the media press corps who questions whether these new media outlets are sacrificing their journalistic independence in making transactional exchanges with the administration.

Dylan Byers of Politico wrote on the issue late last week:

“The three interviews to date — with YouTube, BuzzFeed and Vox — have all put an emphasis on new methods of storytelling, from citizen interviews to .gifs to data visualization. In some cases, including the BuzzFeed Motion Pictures video in which Obama talks to himself and makes faces into a mirror while promoting HealthCare.gov, the engagements lack the critical approach often expected from political interviews….

“From the White House's perspective, sites like BuzzFeed and Vox provide a great opportunity to show off the "cool" Obama to millennials and hawk initiatives like HealthCare.gov. The new media companies don't lose out either: Through an interview with the commander in chief, they gain coveted clicks and political legitimacy…

“The videos have caused some veteran members of the White House press corps to scratch or shake their heads. Some are also questioning whether these new media outlets are making transactional exchanges with the administration, sacrificing their journalistic independence.”

Check out Obama's Buzzfeed video below.