Responding to criticism in recent days that his administration has been inaccessible to reporters, Governor Corbett today stood by his approach to limiting attendance and questions at press conferences.

Corbett was particularly adamant in his defense of the reporter ‘dungeon,’ the maximum security detention facility where journalists are sent when they publish or say incorrect or unflattering things.

“All this talk of dungeons is nothing more than a politically motivated attack,” said Governor Corbett. “The use of the temporary detention center for dissident members of the press has a long history in the Commonwealth. Anyone who thinks my administration is going to back away from that proud tradition has another thing coming… like 2 or 3 weeks in ‘the hole.’”

Reports first surfaced of the 30-room detention complex, located in the bowels beneath the PA Governor’s mansion, in a report by the Inquirer’s Amy Worden.

In a story headlined, “The toughest ticket in Capitol: escaping the reporter dungeon,” Worden described the Governor’s rigorous security and re-education measures.

“What does a Gov. Corbett press conference have in common with the hottest New York prison?” she wrote. “You’ve got to have the cred to get out.”

“Reporters today were surprised to be greeted by two uniformed guards demanding press badges” in order to be permitted to leave the secret facility.

Worden now says she doesn’t recall anything whatsoever about the detention center.

“I never wrote any such thing,” Worden said, looking nervously over her shoulder. “There is no reporter dungeon. No re-education propaganda materials. No sleep deprivation chambers. Nothing.”

Other reporters have similarly backed away from criticism of Corbett.

“The Corbett administration’s latest (did we say cynical?) move to imprison members of the press just isn’t bad policy or hypocritical — it’s dumb,” the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette’s Tim McNulty wrote this week in response to Worden’s story.

“I don’t know what would have compelled me to write such an absurd thing,” said a visibly shaken McNulty. “But 96 hours in the sleep deprivation chamber can be very convincing. I now know it was foolish to write, say or think anything bad about Governor Corbett.”

Despite Corbett’s claims to the contrary, there seems to be little record of previous governors using the dungeon.

Former Rendell spokesman Chuck Ardo said he was astonished by the Corbett administration’s harsh press conference rules.

“Whenever anyone tried to sneak into a Rendell conference, their punishment was to listen to Ed Rendell for half an hour. Honestly I’m not sure which is more cruel.”