Does video show Obama removing reporter from press conference? Fact Check

ByCraig Haley

Claims are circulating that President Obama kicked out a reporter from a press conference when he was president which received much less backlash when a similar incident occurred between CNN reporter Jim Acosta and President Trump.

In November 2018, CNN reporter Jim Acosta and President Donald Trump came to blows during a live press conference when Trump accused Acosta of being rude, and telling him to sit down while the reporter attempted to question the president. The furore came to a head when Acosta refused to let go of the microphone when a White House intern attempted to take it from him, which in turn led to Acosta having his Secret Service clearance revoked by the White House.

The incident sparked a great deal of controversy, which in turn resulted in a number of videos also appearing that claimed to show a similar incident where President Obama has a reporter removed from a press conference which, according to the videos, received no backlash whatsoever. See the Obama incident below –

Which in turn led to a number of claims such as the one below –

Irrespective of your opinions on the Acosta and Trump clash – and we make no judgement here – comparing the two incidents is deeply misleading, for two reasons.

1. The man that President Obama had removed was a protester, not a reporter, and
2. The protester had interrupted a speech being given by Obama, which did not take place during a press conference, and the president was not taking questions at the time.

The person that was removed in the Obama incident was a protester (some may say heckler given their chosen course of action) who had interrupted a speech being given by President Obama. The incident did not take place during a press conference, unlike the Acosta incident. The president was not taking questions at the time, unlike the Acosta incident.


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Additionally, the president did not call on the protester, unlike the Acosta incident. The protester was not attempting to ask the president a question, unlike the Acosta incident, rather was demanding the end to deportations of LGBTQ immigrants in the United States illegally.

In the video, President Obama can be seen giving the protester a chance to be quiet so he could continue his speech. The protester refused and continued to shout out, and as such Obama requested the protester be removed from the room.

Given these facts, the two incidents are not really comparable at all.

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