Conservatives have long complained that Democrats expect the mainstream media to function as a mouthpiece for their party.

Their allegation appears to have been vindicated this week when President Joe Biden was caught red-handed giving instructions to journalists.  

"My policies are working. Start writing that way. Okay?"

According to Fox News, Biden's remarks came on Wednesday during the Creator Economy Conference, a White House event which featured approximately 100 digital creators.

At one point a reporter shouted at Biden, asking, "Any comment on the inflation numbers? Has the U.S. beat inflation, Mr. President?"

Biden: “Yes, yes, yes. I told you we’re going to have a soft landing ... My policies are working. Start writing that way, OK?”pic.twitter.com/dwe6Cndba2

— Christopher Cadelago (@ccadelago) August 14, 2024

"Yes, yes, yes," the president shot back. "I told you they’re going to have a soft landing — we’re going to have a soft landing. My policies are working. Start writing that way. Okay?"

White House official unsatisfied with media coverage

Fox News pointed out how rather than being offended by Biden's order, CNN correspondent MJ Lee appeared sympathetic to the president's demand.

"Do you know if he feels that the economic coverage has generally been off or wrong?" Lee said after reading a transcript of Biden's comment to White House Council of Economic Advisers Chair Jared Bernstein.

"That’s the first I’ve heard that he said that ['Start writing that way']. I can only interpret it to mean that he thinks that that's not being done," Bernstein replied.

"I read a lot of your work and I see stuff I like and stuff that doesn’t resonate with me as much. There’s been some nice research on this over at the Brookings Institute," Bernstein continued.

"My former colleague Ben Harris and others have looked at the extent to which reporting has been increasingly negative on the economy and they find — and they’re crunching some real numbers — that that’s been the case," he added.

"Is that the real press or the fake press back there?"

Fox News pointed out how in addition to telling news outlets what to print, Biden also teased reporters about their credibility.

"Now, is that the real press or the fake press back there? That was a joke. That was a joke," the president said laughingly.

"I tell you what, I have a bunch of grandchildren, and, with all due respect, they don’t read the same newspapers or watch the same television I do. They listen to all of you. They listen to all of you," he added.