Journalists from CNN and MS NOW were denied entry to the White House on Saturday morning and had their press badges confiscated by the U.S. Secret Service, one day after President Donald Trump announced a ban on the two networks and Politico from covering his administration. The enforcement action marks a sharp escalation in the president’s conflict with news organizations he accuses of false reporting, and drew immediate condemnation from press freedom advocates, Democratic officials, and the White House Correspondents’ Association.
MS NOW White House correspondent Akayla Gardner described arriving at the security gate outside the West Wing. “I showed my badge, and then when I was inside where we have magnetometers, I attempted to scan my badge, which we have to do to get into the White House grounds. It did not work,” she said. A red beeping light flashed. The officer asked her to hand over the badge, saying it was disabled. When she asked why she could not get inside, he told her it was above him. An MS NOW photographer was also denied entry and had a badge taken. A producer for the network, however, was able to pass through.
CNN senior White House reporter Betsy Klein was blocked from entry along with others, and their badges were taken away. It remained unclear whether Politico journalists were also barred on Saturday. Staffers from all three outlets had been able to remain on the White House grounds on Friday, the day Trump issued his ban.
Trump cites cumulative coverage, not a single story
In a Truth Social post on Friday afternoon, Trump said he was banning CNN, MS NOW, and Politico “effective immediately” for what he claimed was “constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!” He wrote that media outlets “shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America.” He added: “Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow.”
Later, speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said no single story triggered the ban. He pointed instead to what he called the cumulative effect of the outlets’ “purposely negative” coverage over the last two years. “You get sick of it,” he said. He offered no specific infraction. The president also suggested the New York Times and the Washington Post would be next in line to be barred. He told reporters the effort was worthwhile even if it does not hold up in court. “I think it’s good to point it out whether it survives or doesn’t,” Trump said.
Outlets and advocates vow legal fight
CNN called the ban “an illegal assault on this fundamental right” and said its mission to report on the U.S. government would continue regardless of attempts to restrict access. “We have a right under the U.S. Constitution to do our reporting without hindrance or interference from the government,” a spokesperson said. Politico said it would “vigorously defend our First Amendment rights against any attempt to restrict them” and would “continue to fairly report on this White House and future ones.”
MS NOW released a statement calling the White House a building that belongs to the American people. “The decisions made inside are funded by our tax dollars,” the network said. MS NOW said it “intends to take any and all steps necessary to defend our First Amendment rights and the essential role of independent journalism in our democracy.” The network, formerly known as MSNBC, said it stands firmly behind its anchors, reporters, and newsroom.
The White House Correspondents’ Association condemned the move on social media. “The constitution protects the freedom of the press from government interference,” the association said. “That protection does not depend on whether the president likes a news organization’s coverage, agrees with its reporting or approves of the questions its journalists ask.” The group said the issue is about the right of the American people to receive a full and independent account of the activities, policies, and decisions of whoever occupies the nation’s highest office.
Press freedom group PEN America said the administration’s hostility toward the press is never about the accuracy of news stories but about its inability to withstand scrutiny. “The White House can’t be allowed to decide which journalists are able to cover the president based on the content of their news coverage,” the group said. Former CNN reporter Jim Acosta, speaking on MS NOW on Friday, accused Trump of “taking a meat axe to the free press in this country” and called the bans “a slippery slope.” He warned that the country is on the path to having a state media-like system and urged news organizations to collectively sue the White House and band together in opposition.
The ban draws on a playbook Trump has used before. In 2018, his White House briefly tried to suspend a CNN reporter’s press pass. Last year, the Associated Press was banned from the White House after refusing to acknowledge an executive order changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America, and the administration is currently being sued over that attempted ban. Trump’s latest action comes as the conflict between the president and parts of the media escalates ahead of November’s midterm elections, unnerving civil liberties advocates who say the president is attacking press freedom in the United States.