Pompeo Holds World Religious Freedom Briefing For 'Faith-Based Media,' Regular Press Excluded

Regular media was excluded and only "faith-based media" was allowed to attend Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s press call to discuss international religious freedom Monday. The State Department announced it would not release the transcript or list of attendees from the briefing, which was held ahead of Pompeo’s trip to the Mideast later in the week.

CNN’s senior diplomatic correspondent Michelle Kosinski first reported the restriction on Twitter.

“The State Dept is holding a special informational call today. But the State Dept press corps wasn’t invited. Being told it’s for ‘faith-based media only,” she tweeted.

It was then reported that an unidentified member of the mainstream media was accidentally invited, only to be disinvited later on.

Speaking to the New York Post, a State Department spokeswoman said, “This is not an open press event. We are sorry about any confusion.”

“The Department regularly engages in a broad array of media activities. Some of those engagements – Department press briefings, teleconferences on a myriad of policy issues, briefings and sprays by the Secretary of State and other officials – are open to any interested domestic or international press. Other engagements are more targeted or designed for topic, region, or audience-specific media. This has always been the case,” she added.

Speaking about the department’s decision to not release the transcript of the briefing, John Kirby, a former State Department spokesperson, said, "It is typical practice that any on the record interview in which a Cabinet official participates is transcribed and published at the earliest appropriate opportunity."

"These officials are public servants. What they say — in its entirety — is inherently of public interest. It's inappropriate and irresponsible not to observe that obligation," he added, CNN reported.

"It's perfectly fine to ensure faith-based media have a seat at such a table. But it's PR malpractice to cut off access to the broader press corps. I wish I could say I expected more from this crowd," Kirby said.

NBC’s Andrea Mitchell took to Twitter to say she couldn’t recall any instance of “religion being a test before for journalists.”

Kosinski noted that every journalist would be interested in the press call about religious freedom. “Why limit it?” she asked.

Many questioned the constitutionality of the decision on Twitter.