New President of White House Correspondents Association

The recently appointed president of the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA) took office on Tuesday. Waija Jiang’s leadership appears to align closely with her predecessor’s approach.

Having served as CBS’s Senior White House correspondent since 2018, Jiang begins her one-year term as WHCA president. She was notably the first chosen for a three-year position on the WHCA Board of Directors earlier this year, succeeding Eugene Daniels, who previously worked as a Politico White House correspondent and is now a senior Washington correspondent for MSNBC.

During Daniels’ tenure, there were heightened concerns regarding press freedom under President Donald Trump, despite the president’s frequent engagement with the media through briefings and interviews.

Looking at Jiang’s reporting history, it seems she’s unlikely to adopt a significantly different stance towards the Trump administration. For instance, during the 2020 Covid pandemic, she clashed with Trump over the pace of the government’s response.

“Was the delay in testing tied to a desire to downplay incident and death rates while reopening the country?” she asked him.

Trump replied with a focus on ensuring preparedness before incurring costs. Jiang also alleged that White House officials used derogatory terms for the virus, raising concerns about underlying racism.

“I wonder what they’re saying about me when I’m not around,” she remarked on social media.

As the Biden administration took office, Jiang’s reporting seemed to align more closely with the narrative set by the president and his team. For example, when Biden mistakenly referred to the Egyptian president as the “President of Mexico,” Jiang chose to downplay this error in her reporting and focused on Biden’s critical remarks elsewhere.

During another incident in March, Jiang queried a special advisor over Biden’s handling of classified documents, highlighting a lack of recollection on key details. Interestingly, when referring to Biden’s memory of the date concerning his son Beau’s passing, she accused the advisor of misrepresenting Biden’s recollection, based on the interview transcript.

In a recent broadcast, Jiang noted the challenges of recalling specific details from decades past, even while correcting narratives about Biden’s memory of his son.

Just prior to the Democratic National Convention, Jiang aligned with the narrative surrounding then-President Kamala Harris, emphasizing her connection with younger voters. She discussed how pop culture references were central to appealing to this demographic.

“It’s about owning who you are and being able to roll with it,” she explained, discussing Harris’s campaign tactics.

Jiang expressed admiration for Tim Waltz, describing his ability to balance assertiveness with a vibrant personality.

Meanwhile, Daniels expressed pride in passing leadership to Jiang, stating, “The association is in incredible hands with Waija. She leads with strength, patience, humility, and love.”