Major television networks in the White House TV press pool have said they will boycott covering President Donald Trump to stand in solidarity with CNN after the president banned the outlet on Friday.
In a joint statement on Monday, ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox News said that they will not provide coverage of Trump after he banned CNN from the White House. The president also revoked credentials from MS Now and Politico journalists.
“The public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government. No administration should restrict a news organization because it objects to its reporting,” the statement said.
In an email obtained by the Washington Post, Fox News Washington bureau chief and TV pool chairman Bryan Boughton said the move was directed in response to the ban.
“There will be no replacement pool put in place. All other pool coverage will continue as normal, including Congress, VIPs, and selected events in Washington and around the country,” Boughton said in an email to the networks.
The move could significantly shrink Trump’s footprint on the airwaves this week, as Fox carries most of his speeches. The president’s events on Monday are all closed to the press, but even if journalists were allowed to attend, there would be little to no coverage of what took place.
Trump is also expected to participate in meetings with New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and French President Emmanuel Macron later Monday. Additionally, Trump is scheduled to speak at the U.N. General Assembly on Tuesday, and if the boycott continues, the speech will not be aired on the nation’s major television networks.
CNN, POLITICO, AND MS NOW PLAN TO SUE TRUMP OVER WHITE HOUSE BAN
Earlier Monday, CNN, MS Now, and Politico said in a joint statement that they planned to file a lawsuit against the Trump administration, calling the ban a violation of their First Amendment rights and saying that “the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes.”
Trump disputed the outlets’ characterization of his move and said he was not opposing the freedom of the press, instead going after the “FAKE NEWS” that he sees as a “threat to our National Security.”