AP, Time skip WH briefing after other news outlets excluded

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Time magazine and The Associated Press refused to attend a press “gaggle” with White House press secretary Sean Spicer on Friday, which several news outlets were blocked from attending.

Spicer held a smaller question-and-answer session in his office in lieu of a traditional press briefing on Friday, because President Trump spoke earlier in the day at the Conservative Political Action Conference.

But several high-profile news outlets were excluded from attending the gaggle, including The New York Times, The Hill and Politico, among others. The AP and Time were both permitted to attend but refused to do so.

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While many mainstream news organizations were blocked from the Q-and-A session, some conservative outlets were allowed in, including Breitbart and the Washington Times.

Several major news organizations were let in to cover the gaggle, including ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, Reuters, Bloomberg and McClatchy.

The White House Correspondents’ Association criticized the White House’s handling of the gaggle Friday.
 
“The WHCA board is protesting strongly against how today’s gaggle is being handled by the White House,” Jeff Mason, the association’s president, said in a statement. 
 
“We encourage the organizations that were allowed in to share the material with others in the press corps who were not,” he added. “The board will be discussing this further with White House staff.”
 
Jordan Fabian contributed
Tags Associated Press Sean Spicer TIME

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