The White House press corps, those lapdogs of Democrat administrations, and self-appointed “gotcha” gurus when there is a Republican administration, have now decided that there need to be some standards of behavior required of those who are admitted to White House press briefings, and have come up with a written set of rules regarding press behavior. The new rules would also allow a reporter to be removed from the briefing if they are deemed to be acting “unprofessional.”

The new rules also come after former President Donald Trump, who was well aware of what the majority of the White House press corps felt their mission was, tossed several members of the press at different times including CNN’s Jim Acosta and Salon.com’s Brian Karem. But there is obviously a “teacher’s pet” system inside the briefing room, and no one knows that better than Today News Africa’s Simon Ateba. In fact, Ateba suspects that the new rules may have something to do with him. In March, Ateba claimed that White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre had not called on him for a question in seven months. As a result, he has been known to shout questions out of turn at Jean-Pierre, thus disrupting unwritten rules of decorum. But is the White House really interested in a code of conduct, or just groupthink among the press corps?

The White House issues what are called “hard passes” to reporters and journalists. They say the new rules will also shore up those who currently hold passes, the claim being that 40 percent of hard pass holders have not used them for as much as 90 days, calling those passes not being used a possible security risk. The White House issued a statement about the press passes recently:

The White House expects that all hard pass holders will act in a professional manner while on White House grounds by respecting their colleagues, White House employees, and guests; observing stated restrictions on access to areas of the White House or credentialed events; and not impeding events or briefings on campus.

The statement goes on to say that repeat offenders could be suspended or banned altogether. But while the White House claims that they are not trying to get rid of “adversarial journalism,” like Ateba or other journalists who may ask tough questions, or ones the administration doesn’t like, this is the same bunch who thought they could get away with a “Disinformation Governance Board.” So why wouldn’t we think this is just another attempt to get rid of journalists who might work for media outlets the administration doesn’t like? The New York Post was recently banned from a recent White House press event at which President Joe Biden appeared. You know, the same New York Post that broke and has reported extensively on First Son Hunter Biden’s infamous laptop.

In addition to personal behavior, the new set of standards also has a few other stipulations. Hard pass holders must have full-time employment with media outlets that primarily report the news, they must live in Washington D.C. or other surrounding areas, they must have conducted work at the White House at least once in the last six months, and must have valid press credentials for the Supreme Court, Senate, or House. But by issuing this particular set of standards, is the White House assisting its mainstream media stenographers by ignoring the fact that journalism is rapidly changing? Not just those new to journalism, but many seasoned veterans have left established news and information outlets to become independent journalists at places like Substack, and others who might be classified as citizen journalists. Some White House reporters say there is a fear that credential rules such as these may discriminate against those working independently, although they did point out that those journalists could still access the White House on a day pass.

The current hard passes expire on July 31, and journalists must reapply for a one-year credential, otherwise known as a groupthink gold star.