CNN, MS NOW and Politico sued the Trump administration after their reporters were barred from the White House grounds and their entry badges were disabled, calling the selective ban a blatant violation of the First Amendment. The administration said it was acting against what the president called “fake news.” A federal judge later temporarily blocked the ban and ordered the outlets’ access restored, and the two sides were back in court this week arguing over whether that protection should last while the lawsuit proceeds. This Associated Press report, published by AP Archive, covers the outlets’ decision to sue.
The case now turns on whether the temporary order holds while the lawsuit proceeds. Press advocates argue that selective bans chill coverage by signalling that access depends on favourable reporting, while the administration maintains that entry to the grounds is a privilege it may withdraw. Judges weighing the dispute are expected to focus on whether the outlets were singled out for their editorial viewpoint, a question that could shape how future administrations manage press access well beyond the outcome of this single case.
Video credit: AP Archive, the Associated Press (official channel). Embedded from YouTube; no footage was downloaded or re-uploaded.
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