10 Plus 1: On Covering The White House Beat

(CBS)

So, what do you do for a living?

I'm the White House producer for the CBS "Evening News." I work along with our White House correspondents to cover the activities of the president on a daily basis. It's a job that has taken me all over the world, to six continents, and to all 50 states. It's fascinating and never quite the same from day to day. That's the nature of the news business, of course, but it also really defines the White House beat. One day we'll be doing a piece about the Iranian nuclear crisis, the next it might be a story on the president's prescription drug plan, and then something happens in Israel and all of a sudden our focus gets shifted to the Middle East peace process. In fact, much of what happens in the world today intersects with the president and his policies in some meaningful - and newsworthy - way. I learned quickly that proximity is no barometer of White House news; a story can break anywhere and within minutes it can take center stage at the White House and demand our attention. In each case, however, my job is essentially the same: to put stories on the air that are clear, comprehensive and balanced - and presented in a way that best connects with our audience. It's a lot of fun and always interesting.

I'm going to go out on an editorial limb here, bypassing technology and culture and religion, all of which could certainly stand more coverage, and say "great achievements." What would that be? Well, these could be stories about individuals from all walks of life who do extraordinary things. Mountain climbers, scientists, surfers, peace corps volunteers, archeologists, you name it. I think there's a tremendous appetite - and a place - for well chosen stories that captivate and inspire.

Strange is tough. How about surreal? In that category, I've got a hands down favorite: elephant polo in Jaipur, India. A game sprung up in the midst of a Clinton presidential trip in 2000, after our story had been filed for the day, and at the invitation of our Indian guests. It's hard to shake the image in my head of lumbering down a field on the back of a two ton elephant, swinging a 10 foot mallet at a tiny ball, veering around traffic jams of slow movers, and catching glimpses of colleagues who, like me, were trying gamely to act like we'd done this before.

I think that's a natural: Bob Orr. He's our transportation correspondent at CBS News, among the many hats he wears here, and an all around excellent guy. But there is no one I can think of who has successfully navigated his way through more transportation nightmares than Bob; so in a tight spot, I say go with the pro.

I had early visions of wanting to become a doctor, and was headed in that direction until a last minute gut check led me to Europe for a post-college adventure. While overseas, I lucked into an internship at CBS News in the London bureau and never looked back. And I think the medical community is probably delighted.

I'd have to say wireless technology. When I arrived at CBS in 1990, e-mail was still a pretty primitive tool. We used to communicate with our foreign bureaus via telex. Of course, that seemed to work well then. But now, we zoom down interstates on presidential campaigns logged on to our network email, corresponding instantaneously with our bosses in New York and Washington, assembling our stories literally on the fly. Overseas, we tap into wi-fi at most stops on presidential trips, which means you're basically a flip of the switch away from high-speed internet access just about anyplace in the world. What's particularly amazing is that our Blackberries now work most places overseas. It's still mind blowing to me that I can walk down the street in Tbilisi, Georgia and, in the space of two city blocks, carry on an e-mail conversation with a colleague back home. Of course, there is a flip side: you're never out of reach of the office.

"Constant Gardener," "Cinderella Man" and "Wedding Crashers." I recommend all three, but for a big laugh, check out "Wedding Crashers."

My dominant memory is of NBC anchorman John Chancellor. I'm not sure if we watched the NBC "Nightly News" growing up, but I certainly remember watching him and thinking he seemed worldly and smart. The first big TV story I remember? Neil Armstrong's walk on the moon. Family and friends gathered around our TV in Buffalo, N.Y., to watch history unfold. It was pretty exciting stuff and I bet in some distant way it's responsible for sparking my interest in news.

Absolutely. It's a job in which you're paid to be curious, to watch history unfold and to meet fascinating people the world over. I'm sure there are other interesting things to do out there, but for me this is it. Plus, my daughter, who is only of couple months old, seems to possess a key aptitude for the business: she doesn't seem to need sleep.

I'd have to give the nod for "most fascinating" to the presidents I've covered: Mr. Clinton and Mr. Bush. I think anyone who climbs to to the top of the political heap in this country, politics aside, is almost by definition fascinating. The biggest jerk? That is a tough one, honestly. I'd have to say I've been very lucky on this score so far, but the day is still young, as they say. In case this helps keep the streak alive, let's just say I'll be sure to update this response as the situation warrants...

Great question -- and I agree. A former Bush White House official once characterized the relationship this way: when the White House sees a "problem," the press corps inevitably casts that problem as a "crisis." I always thought that pretty well summed up the adversarial nature of the relationship, at least from the White House perspective. And that attitude really drives how this White House interacts with us on a daily basis. They flood us with information that reinforces their positions, as you'd expect, and precious little is revealed about issues that could cut the other way. That's a practice that all White Houses have employed over the years, to be sure, but as your question suggests, this White House has really elevated the art to a new level. They figure that if they can control the flow of news, they can dictate the information that feeds each cycle. This White House seems particularly adversarial, as you point out, but I think there's a pretty clear reason why. George H. W. Bush's White House was known to be less guarded with the media, and the leaks that plagued that administration angered a young White House aide at the time, who we all know today ... as George W. Well, as president, "W" was determined not to let that history repeat itself.