Exclusive: Speaker's Office Denies Shutting Down C-Span Feed

Speaker John Boehner came under fire from the blogosphere Wednesday after allegedly ordering the cameras C-SPAN uses to shut down during a moment of high drama on the House floor.

As House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer attempted to bring a two-month extension of payroll relief up for a vote, C-SPAN viewers suddenly saw the feed go silent and then shift to unrelated footage of the Capitol building’s exterior. Shortly after, the cable network Tweeted that they have “no control over the U.S. House TV cameras.” Instead, the Tweet read, “the Speaker of the House does.”

The progressive news outlet The Raw Story followed up on the occurrence with the headline “Boehner’s office cuts off C-SPAN cameras as GOP takes verbal beating” and the story quickly circulated across the web.

However, Boehner’s office denies having a hand in the incident.

“The House Recording Studio, which works under the Chief Administrative Officer of the House of Representatives, operates the cameras in the House chamber,” a Boehner spokesperson told the Talk Radio News Service. “The Speaker’s office had no involvement in this matter.”

When contacted for clarification, a C-SPAN spokesperson explained that the Tweet was not intended to hold Speaker Boehner culpable. Instead, the spokesperson said, the Tweet was aimed at emphasizing that the cameras inside the lower chamber are owned and operated by the House itself, not C-Span.

Update (3:49 pm) Dan Weiser, the Communications Director for the Chief Administrative Officer, confirms that the Speaker’s office was not involved in the decision to end the live feed.

Weiser told TRNS that Hoyer’s statements on the floor came after the House was officially adjourned, which is typically when the cameras stop rolling.

“While there are seconds of live broadcast prior and subsequent to each meeting, on Wednesday, December 21, the broadcast continued for approximately 57 seconds after adjournment,” Weiser said. “That length of time is atypical and unintended and the office of the [Chief Administrative Officer] takes full responsibility for it.”