Progressive Media Fear Exclusion at Second Obama Inauguration

Progressive journalists are worried that Barack Obama is going to cut them out from his second swearing-in ceremony. As Politico reports, rumors abound that this time ’round Obama is going to hold a private ceremony, one not open to the media.

On Sunday, January 20, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts will perform the President’s swearing-in ceremony; then on Monday, Obama will hold his public inauguration where he will be sworn in a second time in a symbolic gesture.

But Politico reports that some members of the inaugural committee have privately signaled to the press that Obama intends to exclude them from the Sunday ceremony — the one that really counts.

The White House Correspondents Association has already formally urged the Obama administration not to hold such a secretive swearing-in ceremony through a statement issued by Ed Henry, Fox News correspondent and the president of the White House Correspondents Association.

Mindful of the historic nature of this occasion, we expect the White House will continue the long tradition of opening the President’s official swearing-in to full press access, and we as an organization are looking forward to working with the administration to make that happen.

Even more hurtful to the media, the press would be handed official White House photographs of the incident should they be excluded.

NBC’s Chuck Todd was “stunned.”

“Call me shell-shocked. I’m stunned that this is even an issue; it boggles the mind,” NBC News White House correspondent Chuck Todd told POLITICO. “This is not their oath, this is the constitutional oath. It’s not for them. It’s for the public, the citizens of the United Sates. It just boggles the mind — How is this even a debate?”

Imagine how crestfallen the Old Media would be over this. After all, they’ve worked their fingers to the bone for the last four years to get Obama re-elected. For that matter, they’ve worked six years or so on his campaign, if you count his first run. And here he is about to bar them from their victory lap?

The last time a president was sworn in on a Sunday was 1985, when Ronald Reagan took his second oath of office. He allowed the press to witness that event.

This makes it all even worse for the Old Media establishment. Think of it. Their (now) second most hated president was more open than their Obamessiah!