When Jen Psaki (now and MSNBC host) and her successor Karine Jean-Pierre were serving as White House press secretary for the Biden Administration, they would debate conservative Fox News reporters but nonetheless welcomed their presence at press briefings.

Psaki often debated Fox News' Peter Doocy, but she never discouraged his participation.

Trump White Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, in contrast, frequently has a hostile tone with mainstream media reporters — while increasing the presence of far-right MAGA media outlets at briefings.

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In an article published on May 5, The Guardian's Richard Luscombe notes some of the far-right MAGA "influencers" who now have a strong presence at White House press events.

"A disgraced ultra-conservative banjo player ousted from his Grammy-winning band; a far-right conspiracy theorist with alleged ties to Russia; a TikTok creator known as 'MAGA Malfoy' for his resemblance to the Harry Potter character; and an extremist social media 'influencer' once banned from Twitter for posting a video depicting sexual abuse of a child — these are just some of the 'new media' personalities courted by the White House to take part in a series of alternative briefings championed by Donald Trump's press secretary, Karoline Leavitt," Luscombe reports. "An extraordinary gallery of Trump-promoting characters has paraded through the West Wing in recent days, answering Leavitt’s call for 'independent journalists' and 'influencers' to attend her press gatherings."

These MAGA figures, according to Luscombe, typically ask "fawning softball" questions and push "propaganda," MAGA "conspiracy" theories and "extremist talking points."

Luscombe specially mentions Rogan O’Handley (a.k.a. DC Draino) and Winston Marshall (formerly of the group Mumford & Sons) as well as vodaster Tim Pool (known for posting videos favorable to Russian President Vladimir Putin and the Kremlin) and election denier Dominick McGee (Dom Lucre).

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Read The Guardian's full article at this link.


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