Breitbart may need to reveal business structure to secure Capitol Hill press credentials

Breitbart News appeared before the Standing Committee of the Senate Press Gallery in order to secure permanent Capitol Hill credentials. Within the rules of admission to the gallery, there is a clause that states the person and organization holding the pass "must not be engaged in any lobbying or paid advocacy, advertising, publicity or promotion work for any individual, political party, corporation, organization, or agency of the U.S. government." In order to prove that they are not engaged in any of the above and are an editorially independent institution, the Standing Committee can ask for information or proof on how the business is structured.

Breitbart has publicly said in the past that they do not discuss their investors. The Mercer family, who backed both Trump and Sen. Ted Cruz, are known to be major backers of the site. There have been rumors that Trump himself was financially involved, but that’s been denied by both parties. Matt Daly, a reporter for the Associated Press and chairman of the Standing Committee said Breitbart is going through the same routine process as all news outlets that wish to secure credentials. "The decision is in the information gathering phase, more about their operation and how it works," Daly said. "We are interested in what the role is of Mr Bannon going forward and their funding. We have a six rules and standards we apply to everyone and we are trying to be consistent in all of that."