The change in leadership of the White House press staff brings with it a historic premiere: Karine Jean-Pierre, former Vice-Speaker of US President Joe Biden, will become the first black spokeswoman in history to become the White House’s chief spokeswoman. The 44-year-old replaces the previous chief spokeswoman Jen Psaki, who is resigning from her post at the end of next week, as the White House announced in Washington on Thursday (local time).
Pierre not only becomes the first black woman to hold office, but also the first openly gay woman. Biden praised his future spokeswoman for “experience, talent and integrity”. “She will be a strong voice speaking for me and this government.”
The White House Press Secretary, Jen Psaki, who was in office until May 13, had words of praise for her successor
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Psaki also found words of praise for her successor. “She will be the first Black woman and the first person openly from the LGBTQ+ community to serve as White House press secretary,” Psaki tweeted. “She will give a voice to many, but also allow many to dream big about what is really possible.”
Biden delivers on promises
Biden has always promised that his administration should reflect the diversity of the US population in terms of gender, race and sexual orientation.
Jean-Pierre was born on the French Caribbean island of Martinique and grew up in New York. There she studied at the elite Columbia University. She worked in the White House when Biden was still Vice President under President Barack Obama. She later joined Biden’s campaign team and then became his deputy spokeswoman at the White House. In this position, she has occasionally stood in for Psaki at press conferences and regularly accompanied Biden on trips.
“I hope I can make people proud”: Karine Jean-Pierre, White House press secretary-designate
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Following her appointment, the new chief spokeswoman said it was an “emotional day”, adding: “I hope I can make people proud.”
Another switch to television
Jen Psaki’s tenure as presidential spokeswoman ends May 13. It’s no surprise that she’s leaving the White House soon. At the beginning of April, several media reported that the 43-year-old would switch to the MSNBC television station. The former spokeswoman for Biden’s deputy Kamala Harris, Symone Sanders, had already signed a contract with MSNBC after leaving the White House.
Psaki has always made it clear that she only wants to do the strenuous job of presidential spokeswoman for a limited time. Last May she said she wanted to remain in office for about a year and then have more time with her children.
As chief White House spokeswoman, Psaki has explained and defended the US president’s policies since Biden took office in January 2021. Among other things, she reintroduced the daily press briefings in the White House, which had been abolished under Biden’s predecessor Donald Trump.
A switch to television is not unusual for speakers of the White House. Former Trump spokeswoman Kayleigh McEnany now works for the conservative news channel Fox News as a commentator, while Trump’s first spokesman, Sean Spicer, has a show on the far-right Newsmax channel.
mak/ack (dpa, afp)
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