Over the past three months, the number of reporters with access to the White House dropped by 31%. There are now 442 fewer reporters with a coveted “hard pass”—the result of new rules announced in May that took effect Tuesday.
Politico’s West Wing Playbook first reported the numbers Wednesday along with news that Simon Ateba, the White House correspondent for Today News Africa, lost his hard pass.
Ateba, along with the other 441 reporters who no longer have credentials, won’t be able to attend White House press briefings or access the sprawling Pennsylvania Avenue campus unless they obtain what’s called a temporary day pass.