"Americans seeking to know what President Bush said in his phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier this month went to the obvious place: the Kremlin," writes Dana Milbank. "It may come as a surprise to some that the Kremlin, symbol of secrecy and repression, has become more transparent that the White House, symbol of freedom and democracy... Agence France-Presse White House correspondent Olivier Know has proposed a slogan for the Bush team: 'When we have something to announce, another country will announce it'." Milbank notes that the White House has also refused to confirm meetings with foreign dignitaries, domestic trips, overseas diplomatic appointments and T-ball games announced by others.

The Public Relations Society of America has issued a statement saying that video news releases (VNRs) should no longer use signoffs like the one that got Karen Ryan into hot water: "In Washington, I'm Karen Ryan reporting." According to the PRSA statement, "This has caused some confusion among people who question whether someone who is not actually a reporter should be identified in a manner that could suggest that he or she is a journalist. While this is often done when VNRs are produced, we agree that this can be considered confusing and/or misleading." PRSA also says that "Television stations airing VNRs should identify sources of the material." The Campaign Desk web site, which has done some of the best reporting on the Karen Ryan affair, says it is "too early to tell if these changes will actually reduce the number of VNRs that end up running as news - or even eliminate the practice of using PR reps to impersonate reporters. But it seems safe to say that hereafter, PR companies, government agencies, and corporations will proceed with a little more caution in using this particular tactic."

"Outsourcing, the shifting of well-paid and skilled manufacturing and service sector jobs overseas, has emerged as a defining issue," but Republicans in the House of Representatives want to change the subject, according to The Hill. In mid-May, the House leadership will begin "eight weeks of debate and votes on what they say are 'populist' measures to reduce healthcare costs, eliminate red tape, curb abusive lawsuits, simplify the tax code, improve worker-training programs, enforce trade law and reshape energy policies." The "competitiveness agenda" also includes "a long-standing proposal that Congress should vote on regulatory actions, such as examining whether to raise the corporate average fuel economy standards in cars." The Competitive Enterprise Institute's president noted approvingly: "Regulations have become a form of taxation without representation."