Local anchor backtracks claim that White House prescreens reporters' questions

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Local anchor backtracks claim that White House prescreens reporters' questions
(Image credit: YouTube)

KPHO-TV anchor Catherine Anaya wasn't living up to her station's slogan of "telling it like it is" when she wrongly said White House Press Secretary Jay Carney pre-screens reporters' questions. Anaya made the accusation yesterday during a live report following a behind-the-scenes tour of the West Wing that included a "very long list of items" Carney reviews before each presser. She contended that the "questions that the reporters actually ... are provided to him in advance."

Not surprisingly, that set off a firestorm. However, Carney flatly denied Anaya's claims. "Briefings would be a lot easier if this were true! Rest assured, it is not," he tweeted. The Phoenix reporter backtracked on her accusation late today. In a statement obtained by Talking Points Memo, Anaya said while she had to supply her questions to the president beforehand, she didn't mean to have equated her experience with that of the White House press corps.

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Jordan Valinsky is the lead writer for Speed Reads. Before joining The Week, he wrote for New York Observer's tech blog, Betabeat, and tracked the intersection between popular culture and the internet for The Daily Dot. He graduated with a degree in online journalism from Ohio University.