Why Woodward book poses real challenge to White House

President Trump appears intensely interested in how he is portrayed on cable news. As a former reality show star, he’s involved in decisions about who is dispatched to defend the White House on television, what they’re supposed to say, and general strategy for fighting negative broadcast stories. He’s so detail-oriented in this area that reportedly he’s decided to film some recent statements in the Rose Garden because he believes the lighting outdoors makes him look better.

That makes it ironic that some of the biggest media crises of his presidency have had their roots in a much older, slower, denser medium: books.

The pattern began in July 2017,