Five days after the Trump administration promised to be “aggressively transparent” about its response to the coronavirus outbreak, the White House ignited backlash and condemnation after it banned the press from any audio or video recording of its latest briefing on the public health crisis.

The controversial decision came just hours after yet another huge drop in the stock market and after a series of awkward moments on Monday and Tuesday where Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, publicly explained to President Donald Trump that a vaccine for the disease would not be available anytime soon.

Constraining the press to a so-called pen-and-pad briefing quickly stoked criticism online that the Trump administration is more concerned with managing its reputation and avoiding potentially embarrassing footage than rapidly pushing out critical health information to a nervous American public.

This is absurd. Are they doing this presser for themselves or for America?? https://t.co/m5qL8jS2Rt — Katie Phang (@KatiePhang) March 3, 2020

We need transparency. Instead we are getting this. https://t.co/0z6yXdodE0 — Judd Legum (@JuddLegum) March 3, 2020

No audio or video? Authoritarian response to cover up the sheer incompetence! https://t.co/Hq7rdY1qfC — Amy Siskind 🏳️‍🌈 (@Amy_Siskind) March 3, 2020

Not how a functioning democracy works. https://t.co/Cg7xBadjXx — David Rothschild (@DavMicRot) March 3, 2020

The important thing is not to create bad TV https://t.co/H8j6LMxs9w — ‘Weird Alex’ Pareene (@pareene) March 3, 2020

Real effort here to avoid producing images for television coverage of coronavirus https://t.co/MzsCWgTP7q — Ben Smith (@benyt) March 3, 2020

No audio or video permitted at Pence WH coronavirus press conference, absolutely outrageous and will further signal the public that the Trump admin doesn’t have a handle on this @SenSchumer @SpeakerPelosi @KevinMcCarthyTV @senatemajldr https://t.co/flU4QD32Rn — Laura Rozen (@lrozen) March 3, 2020

Great question. WH says no audio or video. I asked why and I was told it is because they said no audio. https://t.co/YuEBBTkQcu — Katie Rogers (@katierogers) March 3, 2020

Hmm. No audio or video allowed at this coronavirus press conference. So…the public can’t see & hear—and evaluate what’s happening for themselves. If it’s an emergency, the public needs to be informed. If it’s not an emergency, the public should be told. https://t.co/buHwPm1DiR — Joanne Freeman (@jbf1755) March 3, 2020

Surely someone in that room is going to be a hero, right? If the commitment to journalism is such that some of you can’t feel you should even vote, certainly you’d feel compelled to make sure the people heard and…we aren’t getting tape, are we? https://t.co/n3wjJs4IsU — jamilah (read bio before DMing) (@JamilahLemieux) March 3, 2020

No audio or video allowed…for a virus that is spreading. Jesus. https://t.co/po2E6AL2Y2 — Don Winslow (@donwinslow) March 3, 2020

Completely ridiculous. This hurts tv and radio. Suddenly they favor the @nytimes and @washingtonpost ? Is this federal court? No audio or video? The train is off the tracks with pence in charge. Bring in @NikkiHaley already. https://t.co/B4bW1IAj0Q — John DePetro Show (@JohnDePetroshow) March 3, 2020

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