10
Loading video...
+2
By Dan Gooding, Joshua Rhett Miller, Anna Commander, Hollie Silverman, and Marni Rose McFall
0
Share
Newsweek is a Trust Project member
See more of our trusted coverage when you search.Prefer Newsweek on Googleto see more of our trusted coverage when you search.
Correspondents from CNN, MS NOW and Politico were turned away from the White House on Saturday morning following President Donald Trump's announcement that he was banning the three major media outlets from the White House.
In a post on Truth Social on Friday, the president said the three outlets would not be permitted at the White House "as a result of their constant 'reporting' FAKE NEWS!"
"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," Trump added. "Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow."
Read More on Politics
MS NOW White House correspondent Akayla Gardner said on air that her entry badge was confiscated and that she was turned away when she showed up at the White House on Saturday morning.
Gardner said she walked through two gates before an officer told her at a badge scanner that her badge was disabled. She said she was asked to hand it over, with the security officer telling her the decision "was above him."
Gardner said that a MS NOW producer was able to get into the White House, but a photographer also had their badge disabled.
“The White House belongs to the American people and the decisions made inside are funded by our tax dollars,” MS NOW said in a statement issued 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.”
CNN said senior White House reporter Betsy Klein was also turned away. In a statement that was shown on the air, the network said Saturday that it “will not be deflected from our duty to hold the government and other public bodies to account."
Following the reports from CNN and MS NOW, Politico said its White House reporter Cheyenne Haslett was denied entry to the White House by the Secret Service.
"A few minutes ago, our colleague Cheyenne Haslett attempted to enter the White House to do her job as a POLITICO reporter," Politico's editor in chief Jonathan Greenberger said in a statement. "Secret Service denied her entry to the complex and confiscated the pass that allows her access to the White House. We stand by her and all reporters here covering the White House. As we said yesterday, we will vigorously defend our First Amendment rights.”
...
In a statement emailed to Newsweek on Saturday, a CNN spokesperson said, "Earlier today, CNN journalists were denied access to the White House grounds. CNN's mission to report on the U.S. government will continue, regardless of any attempts to restrict physical access to the White House and other government buildings, or any other attempts to impede our journalism."
The spokesperson continued: "We have a right under the U.S. Constitution to do our reporting without hindrance or interference from the government, and this ban is an illegal assault on this fundamental right. We will not be deflected from our duty to hold the government and other public bodies to account, and we will continue to report on the actions and processes of this administration without fear or favor. CNN stands fully behind our White House team."
Politico said on Friday that it intended to "fairly report" on Trump, as well as future White House administrations.
"We will vigorously defend our First Amendment rights against any attempt to restrict them," the outlet told Newsweek in a statement. "The claims that Politico received government subsidies are false and have been thoroughly debunked."
Press Freedom Advocates and Organizations Condemn the Ban
The president's announcement sparked criticism, including from Seth Stern, the chief of advocacy at the Freedom of the Press Foundation, who said in a statement shared with Newsweek that it was "difficult to imagine a more blatant violation of the First Amendment than Trump banning news outlets from the People’s House for reporting critically on the government.
"It’s also hard to imagine a dumber move. The historically unpopular president has been retaliating against the press for years, but it hasn’t helped him," Stern said. "Journalists keep exposing his corruption and his failures. These outrageous attacks only demonstrate how scared he is of an informed public."
On Saturday, Associated Press Chief Communications Officer Lauren Easton told Newsweek in an emailed statement, "No news organization - or person - should be retaliated against by the government over the words they use. This is why the AP continues to stand for the fundamental American freedom to speak freely without government retaliation, a right enshrined in the U.S. Constitution and one that U.S. District Judge Trevor N. McFadden clearly upheld when ruled on AP's case."
"We stand with the news organizations who have had their access restricted," Easton said.
Jacqui Heinrich, White House Correspondent Association (WHCA) president, commented about the situation on X Saturday, writing, "Today’s action revoking access for journalists from CNN, POLITICO, and MSNOW violates the First Amendment. The implications extend beyond these organizations: a standard used to exclude one news outlet because of its coverage could be applied to any outlet in the future."
She continued: "The American people, through a free and independent press, must be able to scrutinize those elected to power, regardless of whether government officials view it favorably. That’s why courts have repeatedly held that once the White House provides access to journalists, it cannot deny that access arbitrarily or based on the content of their reporting. The WHCA calls on the administration to immediately restore our colleagues' access."
...
Trump's Long-Running Campaign Against 'Fake News'
The president has long railed against legacy media, particularly the outlets which are more left-leaning, and has frequently branded stories he disagrees with as "fake news." While that messaging dominated his 2016 campaign and first term, focusing on what Trump viewed as fabricated stories, the slogan has somewhat transformed to focus on outlets Trump disagrees with.
In August 2025, Trump did call for "fake news" outlets to lose their FCC licenses, seeking to cut off their broadcasting altogether. He has also targeted specific reporters in recent years, including CNN's Kaitlan Collins during the White House correspondents' dinner, and ABC's Rachel Scott during a press gaggle on the tarmac on September 11.
Media experts and press freedom advocates have argued that Trump's strategy does more than criticize individual stories; by repeatedly branding established journalism as "fake news," he is encouraging his supporters to distrust institutions that have long upheld the values of independent verification.
Trump and his supporters, meanwhile, have argued the phrase highlights genuine media bias, selective reporting, and inaccurate journalism. The second Trump White House has also sought to publicly shame reporters and outlets through a dedicated webpage called "media offenders."
Former President Barack Obama criticized the restrictions and contrasted them with how his administration treated Fox News.
“I’m trying to think what would have happened if I had said, you know what, Fox News, you’re out of here,” Obama said Friday during an event at Colgate University in New York. “It’s unimaginable."
"...We have not developed the kind of understanding of what democracy requires," Obama added. "And we've gotta shore that back up."
During Obama’s presidency, his administration did attempt to exclude a Fox News journalist from a multi-network interview in October 2009. The decision was reversed following objections from other news organizations, and the journalist participated. The episode did not result in the network being barred from the White House
Ari Fleischer, the former press secretary to President Goerge W. Bush, took to X Friday to say he agreed with Trump that several outlets were biased and unfair.
"Banning them from the WH is not the solution," he said. "Open the pool and the briefing room to conservatives. Challenge liberal reporters. Argue and defeat them. Don’t ban them. Or one day they’ll ban us."
Related Story
Every News Outlet Trump Has Threatened to Exclude From the White House
First Amendment Challenges Could Follow
Speaking on CNN Friday afternoon, the outlet's media correspondent Brian Stelter said there was "no indication that he's actually followed through," and that they should give it a few hours to see what happens.
"Certainly, if there is an attempt to remove journalists from the White House, well, our cameras are rolling," he said. "I think viewers will see it happen."
Debate will likely center on whether the president is legally allowed to make this move, with the potential for legal action.
"If the administration actually implements this announcement by stripping credentials or categorically barring CNN, MS NOW and Politico from press events because of their reporting, I would expect immediate First Amendment challenges and requests for emergency injunctive relief," former Palm Beach County State Attorney Dave Aronberg told Newsweek.
The former president of the White House Correspondents Association, Weijia Jiang, took to X to share the text of the First Amendment, but attorney Alan Derschowitz told Newsweek he saw no First Amendment issue.
"All presidents have excluded first amendment protected media from access to the [White House] based on political viewpoints: communist, fascist, racist, etc.," he said. "This is different only because it covers mainstream media. That doesn’t seem to rise to the level of a constitutional violation. If it did, the [White House] would have to admit all constitutionally protected media. Or use non viewpoint criteria for exclusion, such as size, etc."
Stern said the press needed to keep fighting to protect their rights, not just to access the White House, but also to access public records.
"In the meantime, though, they can take a break from getting lied to and insulted at the White House," he said. "There are plenty of places to find news, and reporters will continue to do just that no matter how many tantrums Trump throws on Truth Social. Just like he can’t keep his name on the Kennedy Center, he can’t keep it out of the headlines."
Contact Newsweek editors on this story: Gabe Whisnant, Sam Wilson and Anthony Murray.
View 0 Comments
Submit Correction
View Editorial & AI Guidelines