Media Komplain Dilarang Liput `Duel` Obama - Tiger Woods
Media Complained because Missing Obama`s Round with Tiger
Editor : Heru S Winarno
Translator : Parulian Manalu
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Port St Lucie, Florida (B2B) - Para koresponden Gedung Putih Minggu waktu AS ini mengeluh telah dihalangi aksesnya untuk meliput kegiatan Presiden Barack Obama bermain golf dengan superstar golf Tiger Woods.
"Atas nama Asosiasi Koresponden Gedung Putih, hari ini saya mengutarakan ungkap keprihatinan dari segala perwakilan media cetak, radio, online dan TV karena kami sama sekali tidak mendapat akses ke Presiden Amerika Serikat selama pekan ini," kata presiden asosiasi ini Ed Henry, yang juga dari televisi CNN.
Asosiasi ini menuntut transparansi peliputan seraya menunjuk ada seorang wartawan peliput golf yang malah diperbolehkan meliput secara eksklusif kegiatan itu, seperti dikutip The Star Online.
Minggu waktu AS ini, Obama bermain golf dengan Tiger Woods namun segerombolan wartawan yang turut bersama Presiden, termasuk wartawan dan fotografer, tidak diperbolehkan meliput acara itu.
Presiden AS itu melewatkan akhir pekan yang panjang di sebuah resort mewah di Florida setelah Sabtu sebelumnya belajar golf dari pelatih legendaris Butch Harmon.
Gedung Putih sendiri membantah pembatasan akses liputan tersebut.
Port St Lucie, Florida - White House correspondents complained that political reporters were denied access to President Barack Obama on a weekend he played golf with superstar Tiger Woods.
"Speaking on behalf of the White House Correspondents Association, I can say a broad cross section of our members from print, radio, online and TV have today expressed extreme frustration to me about having absolutely no access to the President of the United States this entire weekend," said the association's president Ed Henry, of CNN television.
"There is a very simple but important principle we will continue to fight for today and in the days ahead: transparency," he stressed, adding that the fact that a golfing correspondent had been inside the exclusive course sending tweets and giving television interviews had added to the pool members' frustration.
Obama played a round with Woods on Sunday, crowning a buddies golf trip with his long-awaited first match-up with the former world number one, but the pool of journalists travelling with him, including reporter and photographer, were not allowed onto the course.
The US president was spending a long weekend at a luxury resort in Florida and on Saturday took lessons from legendary coach Butch Harmon, before meeting up with the golfing icon for Sunday's round.
The White House brushed off reporters' gripes.
