CNN, MS NOW and Politico have filed a federal lawsuit against U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration after their journalists were barred from the White House, escalating a dispute over press access into a major First Amendment court battle.
Trump announced the ban Friday, accusing the three organizations of publishing “fiction or lies” about his administration. Reporters from the outlets were subsequently denied entry to the White House grounds and had their credentials revoked. Trump has defended the decision, saying he is targeting what he calls “fake news” rather than attacking press freedom.
The three organizations filed their complaint Monday in U.S. District Court in Washington, seeking emergency court intervention to restore their journalists’ access. They argue that the administration violated their First Amendment press and speech protections and their Fifth Amendment due-process rights by revoking credentials because of the content of their reporting.
CNN, MS NOW and Politico said the government should not be allowed to determine what news organizations report or publish. They said their credentials were revoked “without notice or process” because the White House objected to their coverage, warning that allowing the action to stand could threaten independent journalism and public access to information about the government.
The dispute has also triggered a broader response from major U.S. television networks. ABC News, CBS News, NBC News, Fox News and CNN said no administration should restrict a news organization because it objects to its reporting. The networks declined to provide a replacement television crew after the White House prevented CNN from carrying out its scheduled pool duties.
CNN had been scheduled to provide pooled television coverage during Trump’s trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly. With the other networks declining to replace CNN, Trump’s UN trip was left without the customary pooled television camera coverage used to distribute footage of presidential events to news organizations.
The confrontation follows another legal dispute over White House press access. Earlier in Trump’s current term, the administration restricted the Associated Press’s access to certain presidential events after the organization continued using the name “Gulf of Mexico” rather than Trump’s preferred “Gulf of America,” prompting the AP to challenge the restrictions in court.
The latest lawsuit will test the extent to which a White House administration can restrict access to journalists based on objections to their reporting. CNN, MS NOW and Politico argue that excluding them because of their coverage constitutes unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination, while Trump maintains that the restrictions are directed at outlets he considers inaccurate rather than at the free press generally.
