Cameroonian journalist Simon Ateba has accused US White House Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre of practicing “discrimination” against him and other African reporters during her daily briefings at the White House.
Ateba’s claims came following a clash that occurred on Thursday between him and Jean-Pierre, who left the White House briefing room visibly frustrated as the Cameroonian reporter, who runs Today News Africa and serves as the outlet’s chief White House correspondent, was asking her about the US-Africa Leaders Summit set to be held in Washington in January.
Thursday’s incident was not the first time that the African reporter has clashed with the current WH representative. Ateba has repeatedly accused Jean-Pierre and her predecessor Jen Psaki of ignoring his questions, along with his press colleagues in the “back of the room,” referring to correspondents of smaller news outlets who usually take the back seats in the White House’s briefings room.
“People like me, it's been a disaster, a catastrophe, covering the Biden White House,” Ateba told US media on Friday. “Right now I'm the voice of Africa in the US. But I can confirm that the level of discrimination against me and against African journalists in the White House is astounding, disgraceful.”
The Cameroonian journalist, who described the WH press secretary as “an immigrant,” assumed his questions were ignored because of his African accent, adding that he was shocked to find such treatment from Jean-Pierre.
“It's shocking, because she's black, she's an immigrant… I'm black. I'm also an immigrant,” said Ateba of Jean-Pierre, who was born in France and moved to the US as a child. “The first thing, I sound different. I wasn't born here. I was born in Cameroon … I don't have the American accent. I've tried. I've failed.”
Recently, Ateba clashed with Jean-Pierre after the press secretary ignored a question by one of the reporters about the origins of the coronavirus pandemic during the final briefing of Dr. Anthony Fauci, the US Chief Medical Advisor. Ateba interrupted her, shouting, “She has a valid question about the origin of COVID. Dr. Fauci is the best person to answer!”
Former White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki also had her share of clashes with Ateba. In May, during her last news briefing at the White House, the journalist interrupted her and other fellow reporters at least twice complaining and yelling: “Will you take a question from the back of the room?”
“Simon, if you could respect your colleagues and other media reporters in here, that would be greatly appreciated,” Psaki said at the time.