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By Andrew Stanton
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The Freedom of the Press Foundation slammed President Donald Trump banning an Associated Press (AP) reporter from an Oval Office event over its style guidelines on Tuesday.
Newsweek reached out to the White House for comment via email.
Why It Matters
AP Executive Editor Julie Pace in a statement raised concerns the White House's decision violates the First Amendment and would impede its ability to deliver coverage on the Trump administration to its readers.
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What To Know
Pace wrote in a statement that the White House said the AP wouldn't be allowed access to cover an Oval Office event unless it aligned "its editorial standards with President Donald Trump's executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America."
She said an AP reporter was "blocked from attending an executive order signing."
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"It is alarming that the Trump administration would punish AP for its independent journalism," Pace wrote. "Limiting our access to the Oval Office based on the content of AP's speech not only severely impedes the public's access to independent news, it plainly violates the First Amendment."
The Freedom of the Press Foundation's Director of Advocacy Seth Stern responded to the AP in a statement first reported by The Washington Post.
"It's ironic that the same president who just weeks ago touted his executive order purporting to restore freedom of speech now wants to bar news outlets from executive order signings if they don't use his preferred language. One might say the hypocrisy runs as deep as the Gulf of Mexico," the statement reads.
It continues: "That said, I hope that news outlets Trump punishes by restricting their access to briefings, signings and the like will take the opportunity to double down on hard-hitting investigations that don't require access to ceremonies and spin sessions."
What the Associated Press Said About 'Gulf of America'
The AP's style guide is widely used by newsrooms across the globe as the standard for many journalists.
In January, after Trump announced the renaming of the gulf, the AP declared it would continue referring to it as the "Gulf of Mexico," while also acknowledging that Trump has renamed it.
"As a global news agency that disseminates news around the world, the AP must ensure that place names and geography are easily recognizable to all audiences," the AP guidance reads.
The news agency wrote that Trump's order only carries authority within the United States, and that other countries still recognize the body of water as the Gulf of Mexico.
"There are other examples where the AP refers to a geographical place by more than one name. For example, the Gulf of California is sometimes referred to as the Sea of Cortez. The U.S. government has designated that body of water as the Gulf of California, while Mexico recognizes it as the Sea of Cortez," the AP wrote in its guidance.
What People Are Saying
The White House Correspondents' Association, in a statement: "The White House cannot dictate how news organizations report the news, nor should it penalize working journalists because it is unhappy with their editors' decisions. The move by the administration to bar a reporter from The Associated Press from an official event open to news coverage today is unacceptable."
Democratic strategist Maria Cardona, on X: "This Is Insanity. And Dangerous."
Commentator Wajahat Ali, on X: "Free speech MAGA warriors, where you at?"
Author James Surowiecki, on X: "Conditioning a press outlet's access to the White House on them affirming Trump's ideological choices is a straight 1st Amendment violation."
What Happens Next
Some platforms, such as Google, have already adopted the change for Americans. But the long-term implications of the executive order, including whether the renaming will garner international recognition, are yet to be seen.
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