Despite glittering promises of openness in government by Holder and the man in the Oval Office whose interests he protects, the Obama era has displayed an unprecedented lack of transparency epitomized in the attorney general's request for the off-the-record meeting.

◼ Examiner Editorial: Journalists should not meet in secret with Holder - Washington Examiner EDITORIAL

Former NBC evening news anchor Tom Brokaw got it exactly right when he assessed Attorney General Eric Holder's invitation to Washington media chiefs for an off-the-record meeting. Said Brokaw: "If it's worth talking about, let's put it on the record. If we need to know about it, let's put it in the sunshine." Despite glittering promises of openness in government by Holder and the man in the Oval Office whose interests he protects, the Obama era has displayed an unprecedented lack of transparency epitomized in the attorney general's request for the off-the-record meeting. Neither Obama nor Holder appear to understand that transparency is the essential preface to credibility....

It is hypocritical to pretend independence before readers while colluding behind closed doors with the very officials being covered. Besides, the principals here can have a meeting with journalists any time they want simply by convening that rarity of the Obama era, an on-the-record news conference. Then the news media -- and the American people -- can make their own judgments.

◼ Eric Holder 'told US editors he would not repeat controversial searches' - Journalists report officials said they would change rules on investigations, at meeting boycotted by some news outlets - Guardian.uk

James Warren, Washington bureau chief of the New York Daily News, said Holder and his staff seem bound for "an anthropological foray, to find out a little bit more than they seemed to understand about the way we all operate on a daily basis." He called the meeting "an opening gambit."

Others who attended were New Yorker contributor Jane Mayer, Politico editor-in-chief John Harris and Martin Baron, executive editor of the Washington Post....

Several news organisations, including Reuters, CNN, the New York Times and the Associated Press, rejected offers to meet Holder on the "off-the-record" terms.

"We would welcome the opportunity to hear the attorney general's explanation for the Department of Justice's handling of subpoenas to journalists, and his thoughts about improving the protections afforded to media organisations in responding to government investigations, but believe firmly that his comments should be for publication," said Reuters spokeswoman Barb Burg....

NPR executive Kinsey Wilson said a senior news executive and in-house lawyer will go instead of an editor "because we did not feel it was appropriate for our journalists to hold off-the-record discussions with the attorney general on a subject in which we have a direct interest."

Bloomberg News said it would attend. A spokesman for ABC News said it would attend but would "press for that conversation to be put on the record".

Television networks Fox News, CNN, CBS and NBC, as well as the Huffington Post, said they would not attend.