The conduit between the Biden White House has been replaced with an actual pipeline.
There has been no mystery – none, whatsoever – that the press is all in for this Biden administration. The coverage of policies, the interpretation of events, the spinning of his errors, and the avoidance of true scandal all point to the media being in the tank for this government. But there is a building relationship between the two that is becoming borderline nefarious.
There is a long history of migration between any presidential cabinet and the media outlets. These insiders are valued as having a unique perspective, but they also deliver an inherent bias, of course. This was a manner of rigging the system journalistically, and it angered many in the news industry when Fox News rose up and began to mirror the practice with people emerging from Republican presidents. But this Biden administration is taking things to the next level.
Yes, Kayleigh McEnany is plying her trade on Fox. And sure, Mike Mulvaney was hired on at CBS News. But unlike those examples, and the years of other people who passed on into the journalism ecosystem, we are not seeing those who have landed roles after their tenure at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. Biden has developed a feeder system into the news outlets as a standing president, and this carries with it a new level of concern.
Last week it was announced that Jamaal Simmons had signed a deal with CNN to be an on-air contributor. Simmons was formerly the deputy assistant to President Biden and communications director to Vice President Harris. That is to say, he was formerly in those roles for the current President and Vice President. This comes just mere weeks when CNN landed another alum of “Biden University”, Kate Bedingfield. She served as Biden’s White House Communications Director.
It has been with regularity that the relationship between the Biden cabal and cable news has been exposed. Former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki was the most prominent as she landed a plum role on MSNBC. She followed the path of Symone Sanders after she stepped down as spokesperson for VP Kamala Harris. And just to encompass how intrinsic this incestuous relationship is, Psaki’s replacement, Karine Jean-Pierre, derived from MSNBC (and for further measure, her wife is former CNN vet Suzanne Malveaux).
All you need to see what this implanted spin merchant effort delivers is what comes out of Jen’s Sunday program, “Inside With Jen Psaki.” In recent weeks we have seen her have an embarrassingly chummy “interview” with John Kerry as they strolled the D.C. sidewalks and stopped to have an ice cream from a vendor. As for covering the Republicans, Jen had a recent segment when she claims the GOP is weaponizing Muslims against the trans community in a reboot of the racist Southern Strategy.
This kind of home team boosterism is expected (and frankly can be nearly unrecognizable from conventional journalists) but the bigger concern is that this type of established allies inside the news delivery system is ethically problematic with an election looming on the horizon. It is an amazing foundation for the current administration to have embedded mouthpieces within the news mainstream. This gives Biden Inc. a unique spread of favorable points of contact and reliable outlets for messaging.
Just take a look at Bedingfield’s career arc in 2023, because it is rather notable. In February it was said that when she stepped away from her communications command post that she would segue into Biden’s reelection campaign. Instead, she makes the move to cable news, and many would say that this is basically a sideways step in that regard. A more cynical take? This is possibly the desired result of that very plan by the Biden team.
These posts are as desirable as it gets for a candidate as flawed and underwater with the general public as Biden. The man whose prime campaign tactic in 2020 was to not be available at all will need these helpful surrogates should he go through with another presidential run. The press was perfectly fine with Biden not engaging with them on his initial campaign and tolerated his calling a lid on a routine basis.
He will be less vibrant throughout this next campaign. That much is clear based on his inability to engage in a fruitful fashion today. For them to have literal administration players working on their behalf across a number of networks saves them from so much work and spares Biden from some of the rigors of a campaign. It is a clear advantage they will have in the coming year, and the media outlets appear accepting of this ethical breach. It is just another level of corruption in the industry in general.