Are Waldorf Astoria hotel rooms bugged?

President Obama will break a decades-old tradition when he visits New York later this month to attend the United Nation’s General Assembly.

He won't be staying at the Waldorf Astoria, the hotel that for many years has served as the president's usual digs when he's in New York City. You see, the lavish hotel was bought last year by a Chinese insurance firm.

And rumor has it the White House is worried about the risk of spying.

“Publicly what they are saying is that there are a range of factors, including space, cost, and security,” says Matthew Rosenberg, a national security reporter for The New York Times. But according to Rosenberg's Times's story, a few officials are saying anonymously that security is the issue. “They’re not offering any specifics and it’s not entirely clear they have any specifics, but they do seem to be worried about the possibility for espionage there. How well-grounded those fears are we can’t tell.”

The decision not to stay at the Waldorf Astoria also comes a few weeks before China’s President Xi Jinping will be welcomed to the US on a state visit. “There’s something oddly both friendly and hostile in our relations with China and I think you can see it pretty clear here,” says Rosenberg.

The fact that the chairman of the Anbang Insurance Group is related to Deng Xiaoping, China's former leader, and that they were planning extensive re-modeling “sent up red flags in Washington,” says Rosenberg. “From the real estate perspective, it’s probably a good thing. From the slightly fearful and concerned security people in Washington, it seems to be a bad thing.”

The White House nervousness over hotel rooms at newly Chinese-owned Waldorf may reflect a bigger concern about cybersecurity and Chinese spying. Hackers that officials say were backed by the Chinese government are believed to have been responsible for a massive cyberattack earlier this year that stole highly sensitive, personal information of tens of millions of government employees. “So there is a lot of cyber-espionage going on, “says Rosenberg, “and the US’s ability to counter It has been questionable at times. That’s a real concern. Whether that goes for the Waldorf is another question, but they’re obviously concerned enough to go somewhere else.”

For its part, the Waldorf Astoria Hotel, an official New York City landmark, said in a statement, "It is always a privilege to host the President of the United States and we hope to have the occasion to welcome him back to the Waldorf Astoria New York when the opportunity presents itself."

But until the Chinese-American political skies clear and the dark clouds of cyber suspicion disappear, President Obama plans to stay at the nearby Lotte New York Palace.