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Presidential campaigns

The presidential primaries saw an unusual number of incidents involving candidates and the news media, whether direct confrontations by candidates and campaign officials or incidents involving police and Secret Service agents.

For the rest of the campaign, the Reporters Committee will be monitoring incidents of interference with the news media by candidates and their organizations. We intend to attempt to intervene with candidates, parties, national and local officials and officers whenever possible to stop these practices. 

 

Incidents and events

Candidates' policies

  • Donald Trump has refused to release his tax returns, something done by every major party candidate since 1976, when Gerald Ford released summaries of his returns.
  • The Trump campaign has barred reporters from The Washington Post, Buzzfeed and other publications from attending rallies. Because these are technically private events (although they include significant public costs in terms of security), the campaigns are not violating any laws.
  • Aug. 5: Hillary Clinton "sort of, kind of," almost broke her streak and held a press conference on Friday, USA Today reported, noting that she has not held a traditional press conference for seven months.

 

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