AAN was one of 38 organizations and companies that sent a letter to the White House protesting the increasing lack of access to public events and activities which, perhaps coincidentally, has seen the White House circulating photos and videos of these same events taken by their own photographer.

While we understand that AAN members don’t regularly cover the White House, we felt that it was important to sign this letter because of the strong statement it makes regarding the importance of reporter, photographer and videographer access to government. We also see this combination of restricting access plus governmental pressure to use their photos and videos filtering down to state and local governments as well. It simply shouldn’t happen at any level of government.

However, we also want you to know that you need to take your own, individual, stands as well. As the American Society of News Editors and Associated Press Media Editors explained to their members: “we, the press, have been enablers”. We echo their call and ask AAN members to simply refrain from using the government’s photos which have been called “visual press releases” by some and even likened to “propaganda” by others. The longer we willingly accept their photos and videos in lieu of access, the more frequently we won’t have access.