Simon Ateba, the reporter making himself the story at the White House

Simon Ateba was at it again the other week. As White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre addressed journalists during her daily briefing, Ateba spoke up, out of turn. He was a victim, he insisted, of “discrimination” because Jean-Pierre hadn’t called on him to ask a question.

Jean-Pierre frowned wearily. “If this continues, we’re going to end the press briefing,” she said, as Ateba’s fellow reporters began to argue with him. “You’re being incredibly rude.”

The brief outburst wasn’t unusual. On several occasions over the past year, Ateba has interrupted Jean-Pierre and her...