Of course, making sure it’s as easy as possible for the media to get their material back to base is usually in the interest of the White House. It not only provides a transcript of every presidential utterance and background information on every place he’s visiting, it also invests a great deal of time and effort in what’s known in the trade as "spinning". A steady stream of administration officials and foreign-policy experts circulates in the pressroom, seeking to cast the President’s word in the best possible light. The spinners gravitate most readily towards the television networks and the most important American newspapers. It’s not uncommon to see a correspondent composing a dispatch on a personal computer with a White House official at his or her side, should any extra advice or information be required.
Despite, or at times because of, such close attention, relations between the White House and its traveling press corps are seldom on an even keel for long. Ruffled feathers have to be smoothed and confrontations resolved. On such occasions, small gestures can make a big difference.