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President Donald Trump has said he is banning three major news organisations, CNN, MS NOW and Politico, from the White House with immediate effect, accusing them of publishing “fake news”, “fiction” and “lies”.
It is not yet clear what the ban will entail. Trump also warned that restrictions could be extended to other media outlets.
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Friday, the president said the three outlets “constantly write or report fiction and lies” about his administration, although he provided no specific examples.
The move is the latest test of First Amendment protections guaranteeing freedom of the press in the United States.
It is also the latest move by Trump’s second administration to restrict press access. He has already tightened controls over which journalists can join the White House press pool, the small group of reporters who accompany the president into restricted spaces such as the Oval Office and aboard Air Force One.
CNN is part of the traditional five-network television pool that travels with and covers the president. It is not yet clear whether the new ban will affect that arrangement.
In 2025, Trump restricted Associated Press access to some presidential events after the news agency continued to use the name “Gulf of Mexico” rather than Trump’s preferred “Gulf of America”. AP subsequently launched legal action over the restrictions. The case remains ongoing.
During Trump’s first term, CNN reporter Kaitlan Collins was barred from a White House Rose Garden event after officials said questions she asked the president earlier that day were “inappropriate” for the venue.
While it is extremely rare for a US president to bar an entire news organisation from the White House, previous administrations have also imposed restrictions on individual outlets. President Richard Nixon restricted access for The Washington Post during the Watergate scandal in the 1970s.
Additional sources • AP, AFP