Press Club Prez Denies Serving Clinton Agenda

Did the non-partisan National Press Club unwittingly allow itself to be used as a tool of the Hillary Clinton campaign?

It certainly seems that way if you read Errol Louis's column in the New York Daily News today. Louis notes that Barbara Reynolds, the journalist and professor who organized Rev. Jeremiah Wright's appearance at the club yesterday, is a fervent Clinton supporter -- and thus someone with an interest in keeping the controversial minister in the headlines.

But Sylvia Smith, the club's president, says Louis was wrong: There was no hidden agenda behind Wright's speech. "It should not be seen that the Press Club is in any way taking sides in the Clinton-Obama race because we had the Rev. Wright as a speaker," she says. "He's a newsworthy person in the popular culture now and we wanted to have him speak for that reason."

It's true, she says, that it was Reynolds who first suggested inviting Wright to speak -- but that suggestion came two years ago. "The [speakers] committee didn't think he was newsworthy enough at that time," says Smith.

But once Wright's past comments became an issue in the Democratic primary contest, the committee's chairwoman, Angela Greiling-Keane, remembered Reynolds's suggestion and reintroduced it. After the committee voted to extend the invitation, Reynolds was asked to coordinate his appearance.

Smith says she's called Louis to set the record straight. She also says she's "delighted" by how much news Wright's Press Club speech has generated: "I think it's wonderful."