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White House Communications Director

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White House Communications Director
Incumbent
Ben LaBolt
since March 1, 2023
Executive Office of the President
White House Office
Reports toWhite House Chief of Staff
AppointerPresident of the United States
Formation1969 (White House Office)
1974 (White House Office of the Press Secretary)
First holderHerbert G. Klein

The White House communications director or White House director of communications, also known officially as Assistant to the President for Communications, is part of the senior staff of the president of the United States. The officeholder is responsible for developing and promoting the agenda of the president and leading its media campaign.

The director, along with their staff, works on major political speeches such as the inaugural address and the State of the Union Address. The communications director, who is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the president, without the need for United States Senate confirmation, is usually given an office in the West Wing of the White House.

History

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The White House Office of Communications was established by Herbert G. Klein in January 1969 during the Nixon administration.[1][2] It was separate from the Office of the Press Secretary from 1969 to 1974.[3]

Key staff

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In November 2024, Steven Cheung was named White House Communications Director for the incoming Donald Trump administration.[5] Karoline Leavitt was named White House Press Secretary for the incoming administration.[6]

List of directors

[edit]
Image Name Start End Duration President
Herb Klein[7] January 20, 1969 July 1, 1973 4 years, 162 days Richard Nixon
(1969–1974)
Ken Clawson January 30, 1974 August 9, 1974 191 days
August 9, 1974 November 4, 1974 87 days Gerald Ford
(1974–1977)
Jerry Warren[8] November 4, 1974 August 15, 1975 284 days
Margita White[9] August 15, 1975 July 12, 1976 332 days
David Gergen[10] July 12, 1976 January 20, 1977 192 days
Gerald Rafshoon July 1, 1978 August 14, 1979 1 year, 44 days Jimmy Carter
(1977–1981)
Frank Ursomarso[11][12] February 23, 1981 June 17, 1981 114 days Ronald Reagan
(1981–1989)
David Gergen[13] June 17, 1981 January 15, 1984 2 years, 212 days
Michael McManus[8] January 15, 1984 February 6, 1985 1 year, 22 days
Pat Buchanan February 6, 1985 March 1, 1987 2 years, 23 days
Jack Koehler[14] March 1, 1987 March 13, 1987 11 days
Tom Griscom April 2, 1987 July 1, 1988 1 year, 90 days
Mari Maseng Will July 1, 1988 January 20, 1989 203 days
David Demarest January 20, 1989 August 23, 1992 3 years, 216 days George H. W. Bush
(1989–1993)
Margaret Tutwiler[15] August 23, 1992 January 20, 1993 150 days
George Stephanopoulos January 20, 1993 June 7, 1993 138 days Bill Clinton
(1993–2001)
Mark Gearan[16] June 7, 1993 August 14, 1995 2 years, 68 days
Don Baer August 14, 1995 July 31, 1997 1 year, 351 days
Ann Lewis July 31, 1997 March 10, 1999 1 year, 222 days
Loretta Ucelli March 10, 1999 January 20, 2001 1 year, 316 days
Karen Hughes January 20, 2001 October 2, 2001 255 days George W. Bush
(2001–2009)
Dan Bartlett[17] October 2, 2001 January 5, 2005 3 years, 95 days
Nicolle Wallace January 5, 2005 July 24, 2006 1 year, 200 days
Kevin Sullivan July 24, 2006 January 20, 2009 2 years, 180 days
Ellen Moran January 20, 2009 April 21, 2009 91 days Barack Obama
(2009–2017)
Anita Dunn
Acting 		April 21, 2009 November 30, 2009 223 days
Dan Pfeiffer November 30, 2009 January 25, 2013 3 years, 56 days
Jen Palmieri January 25, 2013 April 1, 2015 2 years, 66 days
Jen Psaki April 1, 2015 January 20, 2017 1 year, 294 days
Sean Spicer
Acting 		January 20, 2017 March 6, 2017 45 days Donald Trump
(2017–2021)
Michael Dubke[18][19] March 6, 2017 June 2, 2017 88 days
Sean Spicer
Acting[19][20] 		June 2, 2017[21][22] July 21, 2017[23] 49 days
Anthony Scaramucci[24] July 21, 2017[25] July 31, 2017[26][27] 11 days
Hope Hicks[28][29] August 16, 2017
Acting: August 16 – September 12, 2017 		March 29, 2018[30] 225 days
Bill Shine[31] July 5, 2018 March 8, 2019 246 days
Stephanie Grisham[32] July 1, 2019 April 7, 2020 281 days
Kate Bedingfield[33][34] January 20, 2021 March 1, 2023 2 years, 40 days Joe Biden
(2021–2025)
Ben LaBolt[13] March 1, 2023 January 20, 2025 1 year, 301 days
Steven Cheung January 20, 2025 Designate −24 days Donald Trump
(2025)

References

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  1. ^ "White House Unit Takes on New Life", The Washington Post, November 26, 1973, p. 9.
  2. ^ Judiciary, United States Congress House Committee on the (1973). Impeachment: Selected Materials. Government Printing Office. ISBN 9780160577031.
  3. ^ "Press Operations in White House Revised, With Politics Ruled Out", The New York Times, August 17, 1974, p. 15.
  4. ^ Monica Alba (August 16, 2024). "White House plans staff moves as aides switch to Harris campaign". NBC News.
  5. ^ McGraw, Meridith; Bade, Rachael (November 15, 2024). "Trump to tap campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung as communications director". POLITICO. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  6. ^ Moore, Elena (November 15, 2024). "Trump picks Karoline Leavitt to be youngest White House press secretary in history". NPR. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
  7. ^ "Richard Nixon: Letter Accepting the Resignation of Herbert G. Klein as Director of Communications for the Executive Branch". presidency.ucsb.edu.
  8. ^ a b Kumar, Martha Joynt (July 6, 2007). Managing the President's Message: The White House Communications Operation. JHU Press. ISBN 9780801886522 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ Shabecoff, Philip (July 13, 1976). "Ford Shifts and Expands Press Staff". The New York Times – via NYTimes.com.
  10. ^ "Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum". fordlibrarymuseum.gov.
  11. ^ "URSOMARSO, FRANK: Files, 1981 (3.1 l.ft.; Box 1-8)" (PDF).
  12. ^ "Ronald Reagan: Appointment of Frank A. Ursomarso as Director of the White House Office of Communications". www.presidency.ucsb.edu. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017.
  13. ^ a b "Key Reagan Administration Officials". reagan.utexas.edu. Archived from the original on March 4, 2005.
  14. ^ "Letter Accepting the Resignation of John O. Koehler as Assistant to the President and Director of Communications". reaganlibrary.archives.gov. Archived from the original on May 8, 2016.
  15. ^ Appointment of Margaret DeBardeleben Tutwiler as Assistant to the President for Communications, gpo.gov.
  16. ^ "William J. Clinton: Press Briefing by David Gergen and Mark Gearan". presidency.ucsb.edu.
  17. ^ "George W. Bush: Statement by the Press Secretary: Bartlett Named White House Communications Director". presidency.ucsb.edu.
  18. ^ "President Donald J. Trump Announces White House Staff Appointments", whitehouse.gov, March 6, 2017.
  19. ^ a b "Mysterious disappearance of Donald Trump's mouthpiece Sean Spicer". The New Zealand Herald. June 6, 2017. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
  20. ^ The White House (July 21, 2017), Press Briefing with Principal Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Sanders, archived from the original on December 21, 2021, retrieved July 21, 2017
  21. ^ Herman, Steve (July 21, 2017). "Shakeup Puts Different Face on White House Communications". VOA. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
  22. ^ "Mysterious disappearance of Donald Trump's mouthpiece Sean Spicer". NZ Herald. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
  23. ^ Shen, Lucinda (July 21, 2017). "Anthony Scaramucci Thinks the White House Is About to Have a 'Phenomenal Relationship' With the Press". Fortune. Retrieved August 13, 2017.
  24. ^ Shear, Michael D.; Thrush, Glenn; Haberman, Maggie (July 31, 2017). "John Kelly, Asserting Authority, Fires Anthony Scaramucci". The New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
  25. ^ Santos, Amanda Proença (July 31, 2017). "Scaramucci Sets New Record for Shortest Term as Communications Director". NBC News. Retrieved August 14, 2017. Though President Donald Trump appointed Scaramucci to the role 10 days ago, he only held the position for six days thanks to an official start date of July 25.
  26. ^ "White House Holds Press Briefing after Anthony Scaramucci Resigns as Communications Director". Time. July 31, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
  27. ^ "Anthony Scaramucci: Five top tips to lose a job in 10 days". BBC News. August 1, 2017. Anthony Scaramucci had not yet made it to his official start date before he was fired
  28. ^ "Hope Hicks tapped for interim White House communications director". Fox News. August 16, 2017. Retrieved August 16, 2017.
  29. ^ Ballhaus, Rebecca (September 12, 2017). "Hope Hicks Named Permanent White House Communications Director". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
  30. ^ Rogers, Katie; Haberman, Maggie (March 29, 2018). "Hope Hicks is Gone, and It's Not Clear Who Can Replace Her". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
  31. ^ "Ex-Fox News exec Bill Shine to join White House". The Hill. July 5, 2018. Retrieved July 5, 2018.
  32. ^ Wise, Alana (April 7, 2020). "White House Press Secretary Grisham Moves Back To First Lady's Office". NPR. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  33. ^ "Kate Bedingfield, White House Communications Director". President-Elect Joe Biden. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  34. ^ "Kate Bedingfield to Depart the White House after over 3 Years Leading the President's Communications Operation". July 6, 2022.
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