Fox News’ Kevin Corke ripped journalists for chasing their “gotcha moment” during White House press conferences during President-elect Donald Trump’s first term, including CNN’s Jim Acosta, though he refused to actually reference Acosta by name.
On Tuesday’s Fox & Friends, Corke clearly referenced Acosta and his behavior in the White House press room, but Corke refused to actually name the CNN anchor after referencing a journalist “refusing” to give the microphone back to White House officials. In November 2018, Acosta held onto a microphone a White House aide was trying to take back as he questioned Trump. The then-president called Acosta a “rude, terrible person.”
Corke predicted a much calmer White House press room in Trump’s second term.
“Basically what we are probably going to see a lot more of is people just trying to get to the meat and potatoes of what’s happening. Can you interrogate a press secretary fairly without trying to make yourself the story. There are a lot of people — and, listen, I was covering the Trump White House during that era,” Corke said. “And I think we can all name some names of people who really wanted their gotcha moment. People holding the microphone at press conferences when they were supposed to let it go. I won’t mention any names.”
“We don’t mention the names unless they want us to,” Katie Pavlich added.
“I think [what we’ll see], hopefully, at least based on what I have seen in the pressroom of late, is more serious journalists, people who just want to get answers to questions. We can only hope for the best, especially when I think back to what Sarah Huckabee Sanders endured, just sort of the vitriol, I think that’s a change that we’ll probably not have to see again,” Corke said.
Pavlich argued some press outlets have a lot of ground to recover because they have a “big credibility” problem, citing the coverage of concerns about President Joe Biden’s age before he dropped his reelection bid.
“The press has a big credibility problem,” Pavlich said.
“Huge,” Corke responded.
Watch above via Fox News.
