NEW YORK (AP) — The difference between a government-controlled camera following a peak in Rep. Kevin McCarthy’s election to the House of Representatives and a camera operated by a C-SPAN journalist was a blurry black -White image contrasted with sparkle, clear color.
In one, McCarthy strides up a hallway in the chamber of the house and disappears from view. A few people in front turn to see where he’s going. After a minute and a few audible breaths, everyone stands up to see what the camera doesn’t show.
C-SPAN captured the entire scene, including an angry McCarthy’s tense, finger-pointing conversation with Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., and a fellow GOP, who was stopped from pouncing on Gaetz.
Some in Congress and C-SPAN are using this moment to demand that the House be opened more fully to cameras in the interest of transparency. There is a noticeable movement in this direction.
As Speaker of the House of Representatives, McCarthy has the final say. His office has signaled that changes are being considered. Government cameras have already widened their field of view.
“I am cautiously optimistic that the speaker would consider independent media coverage, if not permanent then at least upon request,” said Ben O’Connell, C-SPAN’s editorial director. “We’ve had a lot of positive feedback from both sides of the aisle.”
According to Susan Swain, co-CEO of C-SPAN, little has changed in the way the public has viewed house sessions since cameras were introduced 43 years ago. For the most part, the podium and lawmakers coming forward to speak are shown, but little else. There are exceptions when other cameras are allowed, e.g. B. When a joint session of the State of the Union Congress is convened.
The quirk that increased visibility that week in January was that there was technically no speaker at the time. Outgoing spokeswoman Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., approved three C-SPAN cameras, O’Connell said.
“We want to make it as accessible as possible, and I think cameras do that,” said Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan of Wisconsin, who has 25 co-sponsors for a resolution supporting C-SPAN’s bid.
Beyond the McCarthy drama, cameras offered other insights, such as when polar political opposites Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, DN.Y., and Paul Gosar, R-Ariz., had a congenial conversation.
All of Pocan’s co-sponsors are Democrats, which gives them little clout at McCarthy, R-Calif. But there was some GOP support for the concept, including from Gaetz.
Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, was quoted by CNN as saying, “What the American people saw unfolding on the ground was a good thing for our democracy and our republic.”
Given how the speaker’s vote went publicly, Pocan wouldn’t be surprised if McCarthy had little interest in more closely watched proceedings. But that wasn’t necessarily the case.
McCarthy’s office didn’t necessarily object to how things looked during the vote and is open to greater access on certain occasions.
“We are exploring a number of options to open People’s House to ensure a more transparent and accessible convention for the American people,” said Mark Bednar, a spokesman for McCarthy.
The Senate has similar rules but has received less attention because of the McCarthy vote.
Without fanfare, government-controlled cameras have shown some differing views in recent weeks, observers said. There are eight cameras installed, up from six four years ago.
It is uncertain whether C-SPAN will get what it prefers: its own cameras, installed in the gallery overlooking Parliament’s floor, robotically controlled by journalists and available by pool to all news organizations.
McCarthy’s office will likely move with caution, said Brendan Buck, who worked for then-spokesmen John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Paul Ryan, R-Wis, and is now a partner at communications firm Seven Letter.
“Once you give something, it’s hard to take it back,” he said. “They need to make sure they’re comfortable giving access, knowing it can be forever.”
Buck said he believes some rank and file members of Congress are more resilient than the leadership. As Washington becomes increasingly party-segregated, the House floor is one of the few places where members need to meet colleagues they don’t normally spend time with, he said.
“They don’t want their eyes and ears to follow every conversation they have,” Buck said. That might not be a good reason to restrict cameras, but it could serve democracy, he said.
More cameras could also encourage performance rather than legislate, a point Pocan acknowledged.
“But honestly, people who are going to cause disruption are still going to do it,” he said. Pocan doesn’t want cameras to be kept away for the wrong reasons, such as the risk a representative could be caught dozing at work.
Every time a new speaker is elected in the 22 years that O’Connell has been with C-SPAN, the company’s top executive dutifully writes to allow journalists with video cameras access to the chamber, he said.
This year he said, “I didn’t think we were going to do anything because it felt like we were screaming at a wall.”
But the speaker’s poll, which saw C-SPAN’s video shared widely by other TV stations and on social media, prompted Swain to try again.
The Radio and Television Correspondents Association, which represents broadcasters covering the convention, supports C-SPAN’s request. Group chair Jared Halpren said he appreciated McCarthy’s office’s willingness to explore alternatives.
If changes are made, they would be linked directly to the night McCarthy was elected.
“It was a perfect crystallization of the case for allowing independent media into the Chamber more regularly,” said O’Connell.
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AP Congressional Correspondent Lisa Mascaro in Washington contributed to this report.
David Bauder, The Associated Press
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