Patsy Widakuswara

Patsy Widakuswara is an Indonesian-American^[1] radio and broadcast journalist in the United States who covers the White House and U.S. politics. She is the White House Bureau Chief of Voice of America.^[2] An incident following VOA news director Robert R. Reilly's interview of Secretary of State Mike Pompeo resulted in her removal from the White House beat^[3] and subsequent reinstatement 11 days later.

Patsy Widakuswara
Widakuswara at Donald Trump's 2017 inaugration
Alma mater	University of Indonesia Goldsmiths, University of London
Occupation	Journalist
Employer	Voice of America

Early life and education

Widakuswara was born in Indonesia, and grew up in Jakarta.^[4] She has a bachelor's degree in International Relations from the University of Indonesia and completed a master's in Journalism from Goldsmiths College, University of London.^[5]

Career

Widakuswara has worked in broadcasting and radio in Indonesia, the United Kingdom, and the United States since the 1990s.^[5] She began working at Voice of America (VOA) in 2003 as a producer and on-air reporter for the Indonesian Service.^[2]

In early 2021, Widakuswara covered the Trump administration for VOA.

On January 11, 2021, after VOA news director Robert R. Reilly interviewed Pompeo but did not allow reporters to ask questions, Widakuswara asked Pompeo several questions that he did not answer as he left the building.^[6][3] She was hours later removed from the prestigious White House beat and then reassigned to VOA Indonesian service.^[7] The Coalition For Women In Journalism and the White House Press Association condemned Widakuswara's removal.^[8][3] Widakuswara was reinstated on January 22, 2021.^[9]

In September 2023, Widakuswara, while traveling with U.S. vice president Kamala Harris, was temporarily barred by Indonesian security officers during a press event an at ASEAN summit meeting, after she shouted two questions at Indonesia president Joko Widodo;^[10] neither of her questions were answered.^[4] She was allowed back in after U.S. officials, including Harris, intervened.^[10] An Indonesian foreign ministry official later apologized for the incident.^[4]

References

1. "The Inside Story-Biden's Road to Bali TRANSCRIPT". Voice of America. December 1, 2022.
2. "Federal Faces: Patsy Widakuswara". The Washington Post. March 18, 2013. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
3. Folkenflik, David (January 12, 2021). "Voice Of America White House Reporter Reassigned After Questioning Pompeo". NPR.org. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
4. "Local journalists: US reporter's ejection from Jakarta summit reflects poorly on Indonesia". Benar News.
5. "Patsy Widakuswara - Reporter bio". VOA News. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
6. "Patsy Widakuswara: Jakarta native asking Trump administration tough questions". The Jakarta Post. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
7. Nicole Gaouette, Jennifer Hansler and Kylie Atwood (January 12, 2021). "Voice of America reassigns White House reporter who tried to ask Mike Pompeo a question". CNN. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
8. "United States: CFWIJ condemns the intimidation of journalist Patsy Widakuswara". The Coalition For Women In Journalism. Retrieved September 22, 2021.
9. Beitsch, Rebecca (January 22, 2021). "VOA reinstates White House reporter reassigned after questioning Pompeo". The Hill. Retrieved October 23, 2021.
10. Aggarwal, Mithil; Perlmutter-Gumbiner, Elyse (September 10, 2023). "G20 summit showcases India's global clout and press freedom worries". NBC News. Retrieved February 14, 2024. After Indonesian security officials surrounded and then threatened to ban Voice of America reporter Patsy Widakuswara from entering the summit room after she shouted two questions at President Joko Widodo during a "spray," U.S. officials pressured their Indonesian counterparts to let Widakuswara in. [...] Journalists often use those brief moments to shout questions at the leaders in the hope they might respond.