Trump widens battle with the press, banning CNN and others from White House

President Donald Trump has banned three major news outlets – CNN, Politico, and MS NOW – from the White House, effective immediately.The move, announced Friday afternoon in a post on Truth Social, was unexpected and raises serious questions about press freedom in the United States.In the statement, President Trump said he was banning the three outlets from the White House “as a result of their constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!” and added that more bans are coming. “Media Outlets shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America,” Mr. Trump continued. “Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow.”The president has been testing the boundaries of the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment right to freedom of the press almost from the start of his second term. In February 2025, the White House banned The Associated Press from participating in the rotation of reporters covering the president that represents the wider press corps, known as the “pool,” in the Oval Office, on Air Force One, and other venues with limited space.The AP was banned from the press pool for a period over its decision not to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America.” Per a federal court order, the wire service was readmitted into the pool two months later, in April 2025, but the AP’s lawsuit over the ban is ongoing. Mr. Trump has sued other outlets over their coverage, including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and the BBC. As of 4 p.m. Eastern time, about an hour after Mr. Trump’s announcement, no one had been evicted from the White House briefing room, according to print pool reporter Philip Wang of Time magazine.Friday’s announcement comes after a restrictive move against the Pentagon press corps last October, when Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth instituted a requirement that reporters cover only pre-approved news. More than 30 reporters staged an unprecedented walkout and relinquished their Pentagon press passes.And last month, a federal judge upheld the Pentagon’s ability to fire three high-level staff members at the military newspaper Stars and Stripes following the staff’s pushback against censorship.PEN America, an organization dedicated to global freedom of expression, issued a statement Friday after Mr. Trump’s announcement.“Someone needs to explain to President Trump how the First Amendment works,” said Tim Richardson, journalism and disinformation director at PEN America. “As we’ve seen time and time again, this administration’s hostility toward the press is never about the accuracy of news stories, but about its inability to withstand scrutiny of its actions. The White House can’t be allowed to decide which journalists are able to cover the president based on the content of their news coverage.” In an exchange with reporters in the Oval Office late Friday, Mr. Trump was asked whether the press ban would survive a court challenge. Deepen your worldviewwith Monitor Highlights.Politics with respectGet political stories with respectful analysis.There‘s a world of new ideas in everyBooks newsletter.There‘s more to life, enrich yours withCulture & Learning weekly.Follow humanity‘s discoveries withScience & Nature stories in your inbox.Gain a spiritual perspectivefrom the stories in your inbox.Want to understand the deeper impact of critical events? Learn the Monitor‘s insight.Already a subscriber? Log in to hide ads. “I don’t think that a court should allow fake news to be written day after day after day,” the president said.At time of writing, the three banned outlets were expected to sue. ALREADY A SUBSCRIBER? LoginReal news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.The Christian Science Monitor was founded in 1908 to lift the standard of journalism and uplift humanity. We aim to “speak the truth in love.” Our goal is not to tell you what to think, but to give you the essential knowledge and understanding to come to your own intelligent conclusions. Join us in this mission by subscribing.