We are entering a period of unprecedented change in the free flow of information about the U.S. economy.
SABEW, the Association of Business Journalists, is increasingly alarmed by efforts to disrupt or distort that flow by restricting press access to the White House and suggesting changes to the calculation of GDP.
Therefore, we join with the editors of the Associated Press, Bloomberg and Reuters in protesting the decision to place limits on access that the three wire services have to the President and White House staff. We know that our members rely on these wire services to develop fact-based reporting on the economy and markets that is relevant to their communities.
As Julie Pace, Executive Editor, The Associated Press, Alessandra Galloni, Editor-in-Chief, Reuters and John Micklethwait, Editor-in-Chief, Bloomberg wrote in their letter to the Trump Administration: “It is essential in a democracy for the public to have access to news about their government from an independent, free press. We believe that any steps by the government to limit the number of wire services with access to the President threatens that principle. It also harms the spread of reliable information to people, communities, businesses and global financial markets that heavily depend on our reporting.”
We also are raising an alarm over comments by Commerce Department Secretary Howard Lutnick, raising the possibility that GDP reports might be revised to separate government expenditures from the rest of the data. This raises the possibility that GDP and other economic data will be distorted, particularly if the Bureau of Economic Analysis eliminates the government accounts from its releases.
We don’t think it is a coincidence that the administration has curbed access to the White House for Bloomberg, Reuters and the Associated Press while simultaneously suggesting it may want to obscure the effect of its cost-cutting measures on the overall economy.
There is the potential for long-term damage to the public’s right to know what’s going on with the economy – and the ability to make sound decisions based on accurate, complete data.
SABEW is the largest association of business journalists. The nonprofit organization advocates for the protection of the First Amendment and a free press.
