The White House pledges to go on the record more with reporters amid Trump's war on anonymous sources
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- White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said the White House will go on the record more with reporters.
- President Donald Trump has often criticized reporters for using anonymous sources.
White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders on Monday pledged to make more statements on the record.
During a town hall at George Washington University, Sanders said communications staffers held a meeting on Monday in which they committed to "push for things that come from the administration, and particularly from the press office, to be on the record."
"It's hard for us to argue that we want you guys to have on-record sources if we're not going on the record," Sanders said.
Though Sanders said the White House may still go off the record in certain instances, she said that "if it's particularly a policy initiative, that should be on the record for us."
Trump has repeatedly lamented reporters' use of confidential sources in stories about the administration, despite offering himself up as a confidential source for reporters for years during his time as a New York businessman, going as far as masquerading as his own publicist to brag about himself and his sexual prowess to reporters.
He has also accused reporters of inventing sources, though he has not offered any evidence to support his claim.
Anonymous sourcing is typically used to allow sources to speak more freely, without fear of repercussion from their employers or other individuals.
Some political reporters have caught heat for allowing advisers and officials to snipe at opponents without putting their name on claims.
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