Dogfight over videos of White House pup

[Tab]

This is no laughing matter. At stake are Webcasting rights to video clips of Barney, the first pooch, and his antics around 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. The White House has so far denied requests from online publishers seeking copies of the third annual Barney holiday video, insisting on hosting the video exclusively on its own Web site while at the same time freely granting broadcast rights to TV networks.

That's got some online publishers, including the Post, up in arms over a legally dubious double-standard and potential lost advertising revenue. Last year's Barney video drew 24 million viewers to the White House Web site, a White House spokesman said--about the same number of people who visited the political site during the November election. Now plans for a new video promise to renew the tug-of-war over the taxpayer-funded project.
...
But officialdom's Christmas spirit ended there. News organizations were prohibited from hosting last year's popular "Barney Reloaded" flick on their Web sites and instead must link to the files on WhiteHouse.gov, the White House insisted.
...
"The justifications we have been given are that (1) the White House wants to drive 'eyeballs' to the White House site and (2) the White House is concerned that the video might appear 'all over' if it gave it to WashingtonPost.com and other online news sites," Feaver wrote last December. "I think you will agree that neither of these attempted justifications is substantial and neither justifies the White House's discrimination against online news sites."
http://news.zdnet.com/2100-9588_22-5458884.html?tag=zdfd.newsfeed

[katmondoo]

1. At least the dogs see the White House Christmas decorations live

we see only the video, when the white House choses to release it.

[Rhiannon12866]

2. I actually went to the White House website to see the video

of Barney. He's adorable, no matter who he belongs to. That was the only thing that I looked at, LOL!:D

[54anickel]

3. Taxpayer-funder project!?!!! WTF, my money is being used for some

stupid propaganda film of a f'ing dog, trying to sell the nonexistant "human-side" of the beast in the WH to animal lovers?

How do we get this nominated for the old "Golden-fleece" award?

[Soopercali]

4. And this is what passes for journalism?

I guess there's no actual news to cover anywhere?

[Rhiannon12866]

5. I agree. There is plenty of news that desperately needs covering,

and isn't being brought to our attention because it is all so ceaselessly bad. This dog is an intentional distraction. While I agree that Barney should take a back seat to the thousands who are dying in Iraq, our bankrupt economy and the increasing attacks on our Constitution and erosion of our civil liberties, I still think that he's a cute dog.:shrug: