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| US President Donald Trump |
US President Donald Trump has announced an immediate ban on three major news outlets — CNN, MS NOW and Politico — from the White House. In a lengthy Truth Social post on Friday, the president accused the organisations of constantly writing or reporting “fiction or lies” about him, his administration and the United States. He gave no specific examples of the stories that triggered the decision.
It remains unclear exactly how the ban will work. Officials have not confirmed whether reporters from the three outlets will be completely barred from entering White House grounds or simply excluded from certain briefings and the official press pool. Shortly after the announcement, journalists from CNN and Politico were still present on the White House complex.
Trump later told reporters in the Oval Office that the ban was the result of “cumulative stories over the last few years.” He added that “others” could join the banned list but named no further outlets. The move is the latest chapter in the president’s long-running battles with the American media.
Since returning to office in January 2025, the Trump administration has repeatedly clashed with the White House press corps. In February 2025 it took control of the press pool from the White House Correspondents’ Association and restricted Associated Press access after the agency continued using the term “Gulf of Mexico” instead of “Gulf of America.” That AP case is still before the courts. During his first term, Trump also temporarily banned CNN’s Jim Acosta before a lawsuit restored the journalist’s credentials.
Legal experts and press freedom groups have already condemned the latest ban. The Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University said the action is unconstitutional because the White House press pool is a public forum. The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press predicted courts will quickly strike the ban down, describing it as “flatly unconstitutional.”
The announcement is expected to face rapid legal challenges from the affected news organisations and free-press advocates. For now, it marks another sharp escalation in the tension between the Trump White House and parts of the mainstream media.