Tony Snow Was Good at His Job

Press secretary won over a hostile press corps with wit, knowledge

By Kevin Spak, Newser Staff

Posted Jul 12, 2008 2:34 PM CDT

(Newser) – When Tony Snow took over as press secretary 2 years ago, the White House press corps wanted blood. Snow’s predecessors, the hostile Ari Fleischer and misinformed Scott McClellan, had left a bad taste in their mouths. But then came Snow, a breath of fresh air who won over the room with his knowledge and wit, writes Massimo Calabresi of Time.

Snow was a vociferous defender of the administration, but his expertise helped reporters do their jobs. And his mistakes seemed less galling, because he was willing to admit to them. When he returned after cancer treatment, the room applauded. “Not everybody will survive cancer,” he said. “You have got to realize you've got the gift of life, so make the most of it.”

[Images (3)]

[Videos (1)]

President Bush waves while walking with outgoing White House Press Secretary Tony Snow, upon their arrival on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, in this Sept. 14, 2007 file photo. (AP Photo/Lawrence Jackson, File)

White House spokesman Tony Snow conducts his first press briefing in the Brady Press Briefing Room of the White House in Washington Tuesday, May 16, 2006. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert, File)

White House Press Secretary Tony Snow responds to a reporter's question, in this Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2006 file photo. (AP Photo/Ron Edmonds, FILE)

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow

Tony Snow's obituary on Fox News. (SkiTcH1951)

View larger videos >>

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »

To report an error on this story, notify our editors.

More Newser Stories

Tony Snow Dies of Cancer at 53

(AP) - Tony Snow, a conservative writer and commentator who cheerfully sparred with reporters in the White House briefing room during a year and a half stint as President Bush's press secretary, has died of colon cancer, Fox News reported today. Snow was 53 years old. Snow, who served as the first host of the television news program "Fox News Sunday," would later say that in the Bush administration he was enjoying "the most exciting, intellectually aerobic job I'm ever going to have." More»

Where Bush Was Bashed, Obama Gets Free Pass

GOP faithful can't fathom why press goes so easy on new president

(NEWSER) - Supporters of George Bush are miffed about the passes the media has given President Obama for trespasses the former president would likely have been excoriated for. “We have a joke about it. We’re going to start a website: IfBushHadDoneThat.com,” former Bush counselor Ed Gillespie tells Politico. Some examples of perceived media bias: More»

Carter Confidant, Press Secretary Powell Dead at 65

Aide helped engineer Ga. governor's rise to the White House

(NEWSER) - Former White House press secretary Jody Powell, a longtime aide who helped engineer Jimmy Carter's run to the White House, died today after apparently suffering a heart attack at his Maryland home, the Washington Post reports. He was 65. A member of the "Georgia Mafia" that stormed the capital after the 1976 election, Powell leveraged his close relationship with Carter to the benefit of the reporters who relied on him for information. More»

Bush Pays Respects to Snow

President hails late former spokesman's 'record of accomplishment'

(AP) - President Bush fondly remembered Tony Snow today, telling mourners at his funeral that the conservative commentator-turned-White House press secretary "amassed a rare record of accomplishment." "He knew the job of a reporter was vigorous. He understood the profession and always treated it with respect," Bush said during a service at Washington's Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. More»

McClellan: I Believed Bush

Says he's answering 'loyalty to the truth,' that White House wanted him silent

(NEWSER) - Affection and loyalty blinded Scott McClellan in the run-up to the Iraq war, but now the former press secretary has found a higher allegiance—“a loyalty to the truth.” McClellan, whose book is causing a media storm for alleging President Bush ran a “propaganda” campaign about the war, defended his work this morning on NBC's Today. More»

NEWS FROM OUR PARTNERS

What is Newser?

Face it: there's too much news. At Newser, we choose the most thought-provoking and entertaining stories from hundreds of US and international sources and reduce them to a headline, picture, and two paragraphs. And we do it 24/7—you can come back morning, noon, night (and in between) for something new that matters. Read less, know more.

Learn more »

Partnering with: Slate

View Newser on the mobile website

Tony Snow Was Good at His Job