White House Communications Director

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.

White House Communications Director
Incumbent Steven Cheung since January 20, 2025
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 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

• Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor to the President and White House Communications Director: Steven Cheung

• Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor to the President and White House Press Secretary: Karoline Leavitt

List of directors

Denotes acting capacity.

Image	Name	Start	End	Duration	Ref(s)	President
	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
		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 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	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	January 20, 2017	March 6, 2017	45 days			Donald Trump (2017–2021)
	Michael Dubke	March 6, 2017	June 2, 2017	88 days
	Sean Spicer	June 2, 2017	July 21, 2017	49 days
	Anthony Scaramucci	July 21, 2017	July 31, 2017	10 days
	Hope Hicks	August 16, 2017	September 12, 2017	225 days
		September 12, 2017	March 29, 2018
	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, 325 days
	Steven Cheung	January 20, 2025	Incumbent	332 days			Donald Trump (2025–present)