White House Communications Director

(Redirected from White House communications director) U.S. presidential staff member in charge of the White House's media campaign

White House Communications Director

Incumbent Ben LaBolt since March 1, 2023
Executive Office of the President White House Office
Reports to	White House Chief of Staff
Appointer	President of the United States
Formation	1969 (White House Office) 1974 (White House Office of the Press Secretary)
First holder	Herbert G. Klein

The White House communications director or White House director of communications, also known officially as Assistant to the President for Communications, is part of the senior staff of the president of the United States. The officeholder is responsible for developing and promoting the agenda of the president and leading its media campaign.

The director, along with their staff, works on major political speeches such as the inaugural address and the State of the Union Address. The communications director, who is appointed by and serves at the pleasure of the president, without the need for United States Senate confirmation, is usually given an office in the West Wing of the White House.

History

The White House Office of Communications was established by Herbert G. Klein in January 1969 during the Nixon administration. It was separate from the Office of the Press Secretary from 1969 to 1974.

Key staff

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Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor to the President and White House Communications Director: Ben LaBolt
- Deputy Assistant to the President and Principal Deputy Director of Communications: Herbie Ziskend
- Special Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Communications: Jennifer Molina
Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor to the President and White House Press Secretary: Karine Jean-Pierre
- Deputy Assistant to the President and Senior Deputy Press Secretary: Andrew Bates
- Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Press Secretary: Emilie Simons
Assistant to the President and Director of Speechwriting: Vinay Reddy
- Special Assistant to the President and Senior Presidential Speechwriter: Aviva Feuerstein
Assistant to the President and Director of Digital Strategy: Christian Tom
- Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy Director of Digital Strategy: Tericka Lambert
- Deputy Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor for Digital Strategy: Patrick Stevenson

In November 2024, Steven Cheung was named White House Communications Director for the incoming Donald Trump administration. Karoline Leavitt was named White House Press Secretary for the incoming administration.

List of directors

Name	Start	End	Duration
Herb Klein	January 20, 1969	July 1, 1973	4 years, 162 days	Richard Nixon (1969–1974)
Ken Clawson	January 30, 1974	August 9, 1974	191 days	Richard Nixon (1969–1974)
Ken Clawson	August 9, 1974	November 4, 1974	87 days	Gerald Ford (1974–1977)
Jerry Warren	November 4, 1974	August 15, 1975	284 days
Margita White	August 15, 1975	July 12, 1976	332 days
David Gergen	July 12, 1976	January 20, 1977	192 days
Gerald Rafshoon	July 1, 1978	August 14, 1979	1 year, 44 days	Jimmy Carter (1977–1981)
Frank Ursomarso	February 23, 1981	June 17, 1981	114 days	Ronald Reagan (1981–1989)
David Gergen	June 17, 1981	January 15, 1984	2 years, 212 days
Michael McManus	January 15, 1984	February 6, 1985	1 year, 22 days
Pat Buchanan	February 6, 1985	March 1, 1987	2 years, 23 days
Jack Koehler	March 1, 1987	March 13, 1987	11 days
Tom Griscom	April 2, 1987	July 1, 1988	1 year, 90 days
Mari Maseng Will	July 1, 1988	January 20, 1989	203 days
David Demarest	January 20, 1989	August 23, 1992	3 years, 216 days	George H. W. Bush (1989–1993)
Margaret Tutwiler	August 23, 1992	January 20, 1993	150 days	George H. W. Bush (1989–1993)
George Stephanopoulos	January 20, 1993	June 7, 1993	138 days	Bill Clinton (1993–2001)
Mark Gearan	June 7, 1993	August 14, 1995	2 years, 68 days
Don Baer	August 14, 1995	July 31, 1997	1 year, 351 days
Ann Lewis	July 31, 1997	March 10, 1999	1 year, 222 days
Loretta Ucelli	March 10, 1999	January 20, 2001	1 year, 316 days
Karen Hughes	January 20, 2001	October 2, 2001	255 days	George W. Bush (2001–2009)
Dan Bartlett	October 2, 2001	January 5, 2005	3 years, 95 days
Nicolle Wallace	January 5, 2005	July 24, 2006	1 year, 200 days
Kevin Sullivan	July 24, 2006	January 20, 2009	2 years, 180 days
Ellen Moran	January 20, 2009	April 21, 2009	91 days	Barack Obama (2009–2017)
Anita Dunn Acting	April 21, 2009	November 30, 2009	223 days
Dan Pfeiffer	November 30, 2009	January 25, 2013	3 years, 56 days
Jen Palmieri	January 25, 2013	April 1, 2015	2 years, 66 days
Jen Psaki	April 1, 2015	January 20, 2017	1 year, 294 days
Sean Spicer Acting	January 20, 2017	March 6, 2017	45 days	Donald Trump (2017–2021)
Michael Dubke	March 6, 2017	June 2, 2017	88 days
Sean Spicer Acting	June 2, 2017	July 21, 2017	49 days
Anthony Scaramucci	July 21, 2017	July 31, 2017	11 days
Hope Hicks	August 16, 2017 Acting: August 16 – September 12, 2017	March 29, 2018	225 days
Bill Shine	July 5, 2018	March 8, 2019	246 days
Stephanie Grisham	July 1, 2019	April 7, 2020	281 days
Kate Bedingfield	January 20, 2021	March 1, 2023	2 years, 40 days	Joe Biden (2021–2025)
Ben LaBolt	March 1, 2023	January 20, 2025	1 year, 294 days	Joe Biden (2021–2025)
Steven Cheung	January 20, 2025	Designate	−31 days	Donald Trump (2025)

References

"White House Unit Takes on New Life", The Washington Post, November 26, 1973, p. 9.
Judiciary, United States Congress House Committee on the (1973). Impeachment: Selected Materials. Government Printing Office. ISBN 9780160577031.
"Press Operations in White House Revised, With Politics Ruled Out", The New York Times, August 17, 1974, p. 15.
Monica Alba (August 16, 2024). "White House plans staff moves as aides switch to Harris campaign". NBC News.
McGraw, Meridith; Bade, Rachael (November 15, 2024). "Trump to tap campaign spokesperson Steven Cheung as communications director". POLITICO. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
Moore, Elena (November 15, 2024). "Trump picks Karoline Leavitt to be youngest White House press secretary in history". NPR. Retrieved November 22, 2024.
"Richard Nixon: Letter Accepting the Resignation of Herbert G. Klein as Director of Communications for the Executive Branch". presidency.ucsb.edu.
^ Kumar, Martha Joynt (July 6, 2007). Managing the President's Message: The White House Communications Operation. JHU Press. ISBN 9780801886522 – via Google Books.
Shabecoff, Philip (July 13, 1976). "Ford Shifts and Expands Press Staff". The New York Times – via NYTimes.com.
"Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum". fordlibrarymuseum.gov.
"URSOMARSO, FRANK: Files, 1981 (3.1 l.ft.; Box 1-8)" (PDF).
"Ronald Reagan: Appointment of Frank A. Ursomarso as Director of the White House Office of Communications". www.presidency.ucsb.edu. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017.
^ "Key Reagan Administration Officials". reagan.utexas.edu. Archived from the original on March 4, 2005.
"Letter Accepting the Resignation of John O. Koehler as Assistant to the President and Director of Communications". reaganlibrary.archives.gov. Archived from the original on May 8, 2016.
Appointment of Margaret DeBardeleben Tutwiler as Assistant to the President for Communications, gpo.gov.
"William J. Clinton: Press Briefing by David Gergen and Mark Gearan". presidency.ucsb.edu.
"George W. Bush: Statement by the Press Secretary: Bartlett Named White House Communications Director". presidency.ucsb.edu.
"President Donald J. Trump Announces White House Staff Appointments", whitehouse.gov, March 6, 2017.
^ "Mysterious disappearance of Donald Trump's mouthpiece Sean Spicer". The New Zealand Herald. June 6, 2017. Retrieved June 6, 2017.
The White House (July 21, 2017), Press Briefing with Principal Deputy Press Secretary Sarah Sanders, archived from the original on December 21, 2021, retrieved July 21, 2017
Herman, Steve (July 21, 2017). "Shakeup Puts Different Face on White House Communications". VOA. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
"Mysterious disappearance of Donald Trump's mouthpiece Sean Spicer". NZ Herald. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
Shen, Lucinda (July 21, 2017). "Anthony Scaramucci Thinks the White House Is About to Have a 'Phenomenal Relationship' With the Press". Fortune. Retrieved August 13, 2017.
Shear, Michael D.; Thrush, Glenn; Haberman, Maggie (July 31, 2017). "John Kelly, Asserting Authority, Fires Anthony Scaramucci". The New York Times. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
Santos, Amanda Proença (July 31, 2017). "Scaramucci Sets New Record for Shortest Term as Communications Director". NBC News. Retrieved August 14, 2017. Though President Donald Trump appointed Scaramucci to the role 10 days ago, he only held the position for six days thanks to an official start date of July 25.
"White House Holds Press Briefing after Anthony Scaramucci Resigns as Communications Director". Time. July 31, 2017. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
"Anthony Scaramucci: Five top tips to lose a job in 10 days". BBC News. August 1, 2017. Anthony Scaramucci had not yet made it to his official start date before he was fired
"Hope Hicks tapped for interim White House communications director". Fox News. August 16, 2017. Retrieved August 16, 2017.
Ballhaus, Rebecca (September 12, 2017). "Hope Hicks Named Permanent White House Communications Director". The Wall Street Journal. ISSN 0099-9660. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
Rogers, Katie; Haberman, Maggie (March 29, 2018). "Hope Hicks is Gone, and It's Not Clear Who Can Replace Her". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved March 30, 2018.
"Ex-Fox News exec Bill Shine to join White House". The Hill. July 5, 2018. Retrieved July 5, 2018.
Wise, Alana (April 7, 2020). "White House Press Secretary Grisham Moves Back To First Lady's Office". NPR. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
"Kate Bedingfield, White House Communications Director". President-Elect Joe Biden. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
"Kate Bedingfield to Depart the White House after over 3 Years Leading the President's Communications Operation". July 6, 2022.

v t e White House Communications Directors
Klein Clawson Warren White Gergen Rafshoon Ursomarso Gergen McManus Buchanan Koehler Griscom Maseng Demarest Tutwiler Stephanopoulos Gearan Baer Lewis Ucelli Hughes Bartlett Wallace Sullivan Moran Dunn (acting) Pfeiffer Palmieri Psaki Spicer (acting) Dubke Spicer (acting) Scaramucci Hicks Shine Grisham Scavino Bedingfield LaBolt Cheung (designate)

v t e White House Office
Cabinet Affairs Chief of Staff Communications Counsel Counselor Fellows First Lady Executive Chef Floral Designer Social Secretary Gun Violence Prevention Intergovernmental Affairs Legislative Affairs Management and Administration Oval Office Operations Political Affairs Presidential Personnel Press Secretary Public Liaison Scheduling and Advance Senior Advisor Staff Secretary Trade and Manufacturing Policy
Defunct: American Innovation

v t e Executive Office of the United States President
Executive Office	Advisory Boards (Council for Community Solutions, Corporation for National and Community Service, Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, President's Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, President's Intelligence Advisory Board, President's Management Advisory Board) Council of Economic Advisers Council on Environmental Quality Digital Service Executive Residence (Committee for the Preservation of the White House, Office of the Curator, Office of the Chief Usher, Office of the Chief Floral Designer, Office of the Executive Chef, Graphics and Calligraphy Office) National Space Council National Security Council (Deputies Committee) Homeland Security Council Office of Administration (Office of Mail and Messenger Operations, Office of the Chief Financial Officer, Office of the Chief Administrative Officer) Office of Management and Budget (Office of the Chief Performance Officer, Office of E-Government and Information Technology, Office of Federal Financial Management, Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs) Office of National Drug Control Policy Office of Science and Technology Policy (Office of the Chief Technology Officer, National Science and Technology Council) Office of the Trade Representative Office of the Vice President (Office of the Chief of Staff)
White House Office	Office of Cabinet Affairs Office of the Chief of Staff (Office of Senior Advisors) Office of Communications (Office of Media Affairs, Office of Research, Office of the Press Secretary, Office of Speechwriting) Counsel Counselor to the President Office of Digital Strategy Domestic Policy Council (Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships, Office of National AIDS Policy, Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation, Rural Council) Fellows First Lady (Office of the Social Secretary) Office of the National Security Advisor (Homeland Security Advisor) Gun Violence Prevention Intergovernmental Affairs Legislative Affairs Management and Administration (White House Operations, White House Personnel, Visitors Office) National Economic Council National Trade Council Oval Office Operations (Personal Secretary) Office of Political Affairs Presidential Innovation Fellows Presidential Personnel Public Engagement (Council on Women and Girls, Jewish Liaison, Urban Affairs) Scheduling and Advance Staff Secretary (Executive Clerk, Presidential Correspondence, Office of Records Management) Military Office (Communications Agency, Medical Unit, Presidential Food Service, Transportation Agency)

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