White House photographers say Harris campaign reduced media access

There is growing controversy over media access to Vice President Kamala Harris. White House photographers said Harris’ campaign reduced photographers' access to the Democratic nominee for president.

The White House News Photographers Association, or WHNPA, is raising concerns about diminished access for photographers traveling with Harris. In a letter sent to Harris’ top aides last month, the photographers criticized the campaign for cutting the number of media seats from 13 to 9.

The reduction in space for the media hit news photographers particularly hard, with their numbered seats dropping from four to only one photographer traveling with the vice president.

The president of the WHNPA called the move an “unprecedented” limitation on media access, and said this is the smallest media crew to travel for a presidential race in recent memory.

Major news organizations including The Associated Press, Reuters, and The New York Times also signed the letter. They called on the campaign to either reconsider its restrictions or find other means to accommodate more than one photographer on the plane.

Harris’ campaign responded this week, saying the press pool that traveled with the vice president on Air Force Two had always been nine, not 13.

Thirteen journalists travel on Air Force One with President Joe Biden, so when he was the Democratic nominee, there were 13 media members traveling with him to events. But Air Force Two is a smaller plane, only accommodating nine seats for the media .

The Harris campaign said it “worked in good faith” to ensure travel opportunities for the media.

The Harris team added that it looked into adding seats and even adding an additional plane to accommodate journalists but said neither option was viable due to limited resources.

The White House photographers said they will continue to advocate for better media access to “ensure fair coverage of the campaign.”

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