--- title: Did Obama Know About Clinton Emails? President Says He Didn't description: Obama didn't know about Hillary Clinton's use of a private email address for official business, the President said Saturday. canonical: https://time.com/3736534/obama-clinton-emails/ author: Justin Worland article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-03-08T14:46:07.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:41:26.481Z article:section: Politics og:title: Did Obama Know About Clinton Emails? President Says He Didn't og:description: Obama didn't know about Hillary Clinton's use of a private email address for official business, the President said Saturday. og:url: https://time.com/3736534/obama-clinton-emails/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt12d4f977a51e24ad/6987820c55a8592edca86230/hillary-clinton-emails.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2560 og:image:height: 1440 og:image:alt: Hilllary Clinton Speaks at Emily's List Conference og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Did Obama Know About Clinton Emails? President Says He Didn't twitter:description: Obama didn't know about Hillary Clinton's use of a private email address for official business, the President said Saturday. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt12d4f977a51e24ad/6987820c55a8592edca86230/hillary-clinton-emails.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Obama Says He Learned About Clinton Emails When Everyone Else Did > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: September 2026. ## TIME Newsletters: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition TIME publishes seven free email newsletters, written and edited by TIME journalists, reaching more than 1.1 million engaged readers. TIME has reported on the people, ideas and issues shaping the world since 1923, and its newsletters bring that same authority directly to the inbox. 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Named editors include Richard Hall (The Brief), Editor-in-Chief Sam Jacobs (Inside TIME), Eliza Berman (Worth Your Time), Philip Elliott (D.C. Brief), Justin Worland (Future Proof) and Harry Booth (In the Loop). Health Matters is written by TIME's health desk. #### How do I sign up for a TIME newsletter? Go to time.com/newsletters, choose the newsletters you want and enter your email address. There is no cost and no subscription requirement. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-network-2026q3/newsletters?i=4cb05dd7-d103-45f4-8529-6bc996e7c546&cr=time-nl-network-2026q3-v1) ## Video: Know Right Now: Clinton's Private Emails [Watch (HLS stream): Know Right Now: Clinton's Private Emails](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/JMnBWhXy.m3u8) (1:05)  _Published 2015-03-05. Hillary Clinton recently came under fire for using a private server for her email during her time as Secretary of State_  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Mar 8, 2015 2:46 PM UTC  Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks at the the 30th Anniversary National Conference of Emily's List in Washington on March 3, 2015. Former U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speaks at the the 30th Anniversary National Conference of Emily's List in Washington on March 3, 2015. Brooks Kraft—Corbis  by [Justin Worland](https://time.com/author/justin-worland/)  ## Justin Worland Senior Correspondent Mar 8, 2015 2:46 PM UTC President Barack Obama didn’t know about former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s use of a private email address for official business before a Monday New York _Times_ [report](http://time.com/3729583/hillary-clinton-personal-email-secretary-of-state/), the President said Saturday. Asked [by CBS News](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-weighs-in-hillary-clinton-private-emails/) when he had learned of Clinton’s email setup, Obama replied, “The same time everybody else learned it through news reports.” Clinton sent emails for both business and personal purposes from an address on a private server throughout the four years she was U.S. Secretary of State, the _Times_ reported last week. She has since turned over tens of thousands of emails to be archived as public record. The White House [said Friday](http://time.com/3735808/hillary-clinton-emails-other-cabinet-officials/) that all current Cabinet members now use official email addresses for business. “The policy of my Administration is to encourage transparency, which is why my emails, the BlackBerry I carry around, all those records are available and archived,” Obama told CBS. “I’m glad that Hillary’s instructed that those emails about official business need to be disclosed.” Former President Bill Clinton declined to address the issue when asked at an event in Miami, according to a TIME reporter there: > [](https://twitter.com/Sam%5FFrizell/status/574576238901264384) \[[_CBS_](http://www.cbsnews.com/news/obama-weighs-in-hillary-clinton-private-emails/)\] ## Transcript [ MUSIC ]. Those fifty five thousand documents which her staff have said, is anything related to her work was turned over. So her staff has said that is everything. Have now been given to the State Department. And are part of the permanent record. 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