Jeff Gannon / Jim Guckert

Famous for his sexuality, but more important for his role as a Bush administration plant/schill in the White House Press Corp. Another bullet dodged because of a wimpy media.

I'm not sure if I understand what the big controversy is. That a gay guy was granted a White House press pass? That a guy writing under a pseudonym was a granted a press pass? That Gannon is a gay Republican? I guess it's an entertaining story, but where exactly is the controversy? I personally think that all sorts of journalists should be free to attend White House press conferences, and just because someone is a gay escort doesn't mean they have to be a Democrat.

Abichara's analysis is bang on. In my view, this is truly unsettling story that needs some answers. A big credibility gap is starting to open here.

Jeff Gannon's case is just another in a string of recent revelations that the White House has been making a concerted effort to manipulate news coverage for their own political purposes. Jim Guckert (aka Jeff Gannon) worked as a reporter for Talon News Services, an offshoot of the Republican party's official marketing machine. Gannon, when prompted in official news conferences, would ask questions that were highly laudatory of the President and negative of his opposition. Of course, we're human, bias always sneeks in no matter what, but you can't divorce media coverage from reality. In this situation, it is one thing if you're a legitimate reporter from a right-leaning network like Fox, but it is completely another thing when you work for a news organization that supplies false credentials. For nearly 2 years, the White House credentialed Guckert, even though he was representing a media company that didn't exist and even lacked circulation. The question is how did this happen? Guckert ... Read more

If this situation was connected with a Democrat, the Religious Right and the Republicans would be all over it, demanding explanations and most likely bringing it up as grounds for impeachment. As a friend of mine said (paraphrasing), this is far more serious than a stain on a blue dress.

Whoa. WAYYY too much information about his private (er, I guess it wasn't too private, but you know what I mean) life. Yikes.