The Politics of Presidential Press Conferences

Abstract

What explains the president’s tendency to deliver press conferences? Unlike other forms of going public, the press conference presents a unique venue that allows presidents to grapple with their policy and political decisions in a highly public and interactive format with journalists. This should influence how the political environment affects not only the number of press conferences presidents deliver in a month but also the time between press conferences. Indeed, lower approval ratings and unified government lead to more solo press conferences and less time between them. Whereas reelection years and political scandal decrease the number of solo press conferences, only reelection years increase the time between them. This article also reminds us of the relevance of individual presidents to explaining press conference activity and has implications for a broader understanding of the president’s public appeals.