Washington — The television press pool system that covers President Trump will be suspended for now after the president banned CNN, MS NOW and Politico from covering the White House.
Five television networks — ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox and NBC — cover the president’s travel and events for the pool on a rotating basis and provide the video to other news organizations, often in real time.
CNN was set to provide the pool coverage on Monday and accompany Mr. Trump on a trip to New York City, and now, there will not be a network TV pool team traveling with him. He is expected to be in New York for the United Nations General Assembly Monday and Tuesday before returning to Washington.
In a joint statement on Monday, CBS News, ABC News, CNN, Fox News and NBC News said, “The public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government. No administration should reject a news organization because it objects to its reporting.”
The Washington Post said in a statement Monday afternoon that they will not publish any photographs of Mr. Trump or his events until after midnight Tuesday as part of a “collective effort with photographers in other newsrooms covering the White House in a show of support of the banned efforts.”
Mr. Trump on Friday announced he would be “banning Fake News CNN, MSNOW … and Politico … from the White House as a result of their constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!”
CBS News on Saturday observed reporters from CNN, MS NOW and Politico being turned away from the White House when they arrived. CNN, MS NOW and Politico filed a lawsuit on Monday to restore access. They argued in the complaint that the ban is unconstitutional on First Amendment grounds, and there “could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment.”
In a statement on Saturday, Jacqui Heinrich, White House Correspondents’ Association president and senior Fox News correspondent, said the White House “cannot deny that access arbitrarily or based on the content of their reporting.”
News outlets pool their resources to cover the president in a rotating system that has been in place since Franklin D. Roosevelt was president. In addition to the television network pool, there are separate pool systems for print and radio media.
The system exists to make sure the president is always covered, ensuring that journalists are present in the event of unexpected breaking news. It’s also a space issue — all networks can’t fit in small designated spaces like the Air Force One press cabin, along with the rest of the journalists who travel with the president.
Network pool coverage continues for other top government officials, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Vice President JD Vance, on Monday.
