Justice Department Investigates White House Press Pool for ‘Proudly’ Boycotting Coverage

The Department of Justice is investigating ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News and NBC over the TV press pool’s decision to not cover select White House events following the Trump administration’s attempts to ban CNN, MS NOW and Politico. “Members of the television press pool have proudly boycotted covering White House events. Group boycotts among commercial competitors can violate the Sherman Act,” DOJ spokesperson Emily Covington said in a Saturday statement. “The Antitrust Division is simply investigating to determine whether these news organizations have violated the antitrust laws.” The news organizations were contacted about suspending their televised press pool coverage on Friday, according to The New York Times, citing six sources. The update comes nearly a month after President Trump first announced that he was barring CNN, Politico and MS NOW from the White House for writing “purposely negative stories” on Sept. 18. The trio of outlets then sued on First and Fifth Amendment grounds, with a federal judge temporarily blocking the ban, followed by another extension last week through this coming Tuesday. Following the initial news, ABC, CBS, Fox News and NBC stood in solidarity with CNN by refusing to replace the network when they were removed from rotation. As such, there is no footage of some events like Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit, which normally would have then been shared with outlets around the world. The TV press pool returned to its full coverage on Sept. 25. While CNN, Politico and MS NOW have been allowed back on White House grounds, the Trump administration has now begun arguing that they do not have guaranteed access to specific locations including the Oval Office or Air Force One. Politico was even blocked from covering a trip this past week, despite regaining their credentials. More to come…