White House Press Secretary - Responsibilities

Responsibilities

The Press Secretary is responsible for collecting information about actions and events within the president's administration and around the world, and interacting with the media, generally in a daily press briefing. The information includes items such as a summary of the President's schedule for the day, whom the president has seen, or had communication and the official position of the administration on the news of the day.

The Press Secretary traditionally also fields questions from the White House press corps in briefings and press conferences, which are generally televised, and "press gaggles", which are on-the-record briefings without video recording, although transcripts are usually made available.

The position has often been filled by individuals from news media backgrounds:

• Roosevelt administration – Stephen Early, a reporter for United Press International and correspondent for The Associated Press.
• Truman administration – Jonathan W. Daniels, a newspaper man who was in the Franklin Roosevelt administration in multiple agencies and on various boards just prior to becoming Press Secretary; Charlie Ross, a journalist who received the Pulitzer Prize in 1932; Early; Joseph Short, a newspaper man; and Roger Tubby, a reporter and editor turned Democratic National Committee spokesman before becoming White House Press Secretary.
• Eisenhower administration – James C. Hagerty, a reporter for The New York Times.
• Kennedy administration – Pierre Salinger, a reporter and editor for theSan Francisco Chronicle.
• Johnson administration – appointed George Christian, a reporter for International News Service and PBS Commentator Bill Moyers.
• Ford administration – appointed Jerald terHorst, a newspaper veteran; and Ron Nessen, an NBC News correspondent.
• Reagan administration – Larry Speakes, a newspaper man; and Marlin Fitzwater, a newspaper man.
• George H.W. Bush administration – Marlin Fitzwater.
• George W. Bush administration – Tony Snow, a veteran journalist and Fox News anchor.
• Obama administration – Jay Carney, Time Magazine journalist.