| Taking Heat: The President, The Press, and my years in the White House |
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 Ari Fleischer was the Press Secretary under President George W. Bush from 2000 to 2003. Prior to that he had served as press secretary for Senator Pete Domenici from 1989 to 1994. He then spent five years as the spokesman for the House Ways and Means Committee, before joining Elizabeth Dole's presidential campaign as the communications manager. Finally, in 1999 he joined then Governor Bush's campaign for president. In his book Ari Fleischer combines his quick wit and a knack for debate to point out the good and bad in the press, while along the way describing life behind the scenes for the White House staff. Fleischer not only uses his great memory but also the transcripts of some of his press conferences to prove and elaborate his points. While praising the White House press corps, he also points out some areas that need some work. He also walks us through the aftermath of September 11, 2001. In his knowledgeable, yet easy to read, writing style he talks candidly about the views and policy of the White House. Thoroughly going through his career in the White house, he also addresses the War on Terror in Afghanistan and Iraq. Here I will attempt to go through some of the major issues he addresses in his book. First let's read in Fleischer's own words what this book contains. "This book is about my two and a half years in that grand mansion. It's about the President. It's about the White House press corps. It's about how news gets made, and how news gets covered. This book attempts to capture much of what I saw behind the scenes about President Bush, his policies and his character, and I describe it so readers can have a deeper view of who he is and why he does what he does. This book is also about the press, and that's a very complicated topic in itself. The White House press corps is one of the toughest, sharpest, most skeptical groups anyone will ever encounter. They're the best in the business, and that's why they're stationed at the White house." The issue that Fleischer keeps addressing is the press's love for conflict. When the press gets a hold of any conflict, especially between two members of the same organization, party, denomination, etc, they won't let go. Fleischer says, "To me this is a growing problem for America's political system and for the White House press corps. It's not a question of bias, partisanship, or press-driven ideology. Instead, it's a focus on conflict particularly if it's a conflict the press can attach to the President. It's the nature of the White House press corps, regardless of who's in power. They are masters of being the devil's advocate, able to take with passion the opposite side of whatever issue the President supports." He also addresses the press's fascination on bad news. "Having stood at that White House podium for two and a half years, I believe what's really at stake is whether the public is getting complete and accurate news, or mostly the bad news, form the press. Are they reading and seeing all sides, including the positive side, or mostly the bad side? Is the good news in Iraq being covered as frequently as bad news? No, it's not. Bad news travels through the press with a greater velocity and intensity than good news. Bad news stories can stretch for days and weeks. Good news stories are often one-day events." After reading his book, I have to agree with Fleischer. The bad news and the conflict is very popular in the media. Just look at the newspaper or the web. Everywhere the bad news is flaunted while good news is lucky to even make it in the paper. Later Fleischer addresses the press's interesting terminology. "Why are the press so willing to label one side and so reluctant to label the other using equal terms? Why have they largely stopped using the word liberal ? Yet they show no such reluctance to label Republicans as right-wingers or conservatives, charges often made by Democrats." Ari also says that the press is skeptical concerning Christians. "Too often, the press believe that readers deserve to know if someone is a conservative Christian. If a strong majority of reporters weren't so Democratic themselves, and liberal, especially on social issues, they wouldn't view conservative Christians in such a skeptical manner. If more reporters and editors were neutral or Republican, they would spot a religious left and cover it with the same skepticism used when covering the religious right." As I read this section of Fleischer's book I was reminded of a quote by Ronald Reagan in regard to the press's terminology, "I've never been able to understand why a Republican contributor is a 'fat cat' and a Democratic contributor of the same amount of money is a 'public-spirited philanthropist'." That about sums it all up doesn't it? Fleischer's book is a very entertaining and educating read. I highly recommend this book if you are at all interested in politics or the press. I will leave you with Fleischer's last remarks. "I loved my job in the White House, and I remain an avid follower of the news. Government service and journalism are both noble endeavors. Great institutions that last forever are made stronger by the reflections of those of us fortunate to have passed through. From my perch at the podium, I took a lot of heat. I hope I also shed some light." Abraham R. Sweet |
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