New York (AP) — Reporters from three major news organizations — CNN, MS NOW and Politico — were denied access to the White House on Saturday morning, with reporters from the two cable networks both going live to report they’d been barred following a ban imposed by President Donald Trump.
The actions escalated Trump’s long-running efforts to restrict news coverage by journalists he finds objectionable, and is the latest test of First Amendment protections in the United States. Trump said Friday he would ban both organizations and also Politico, because of their coverage — which he called “fake news.”
Politico said its White House reporter Cheyenne Haslett was also denied entry to the White House and had her badge confiscated. The announcement came shortly after the turning away of MS NOW and CNN journalists.
Editor-in-chief Jonathan Greenberger said in a statement to the Politico newsroom: “We stand by her and all reporters here covering the White House. … We will vigorously defend our First Amendment rights.”
CNN issued a statement saying it stood behind its reporters. “We will not be deflected from our duty to hold the government and other public bodies to account,” it said. The statement was shown on the air before senior White House reporter Betsy Klein began to report on her ban.
MS NOW also said in a statement that it stands behind its journalists.
“The White House belongs to the American people and the decisions made inside are funded by our tax dollars,” the network said in a statement Saturday. “MS NOW 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 president wrote on his social media site Friday that effective immediately, “I am banning” CNN, MS NOW and Politico “from the White House as a result of their constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!” Minutes later, speaking at an event in the Oval Office, Trump was asked to explain his statement.
“Because they’re fake news,” he said. “You get so tired of reading and seeing fake news. When you look at CNN, it’s just fake. That’s why their ratings are no good. When you look at MS NOW … , it’s fake news.”
“And when you look at Politico … the stories they wrote are fake. So there’s a lot of news and there may be others to join them, and maybe they can get better,” he said. “But our country has to have honest news.”
In his second term, Trump and his administration have upped the ante and punished certain media outlets, both in the courtroom and through regulatory action. Trump has also lashed out at individual reporters in person or over social media, sometimes in strikingly personal terms.