One week ago, Trump banned the press and then doubled down. Then, no one was there to take pictures of China President’s entry

The drama surrounding press access at the White House just took an interesting turn yesterday. According to The Hill, President Donald Trump publicly criticized major news outlets for following a ban he instituted before a high-stakes state visit. Considering the president’s wishes, even with a federal judge ordering the administration to reinstate the credentials of several banned organizations, the situation on the ground remains incredibly messy and confusing.

One week ago, Trump reportedly banned CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House because of their constant reporting of “fake news.” The DOJ even argued in court that the journalism produced by these outlets put national security at risk. As a result, the television pool, a rotating group of journalists from major networks, decided to stop covering the president’s daily activities in a show of solidarity. This included the state visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping. 

In retaliation, Trump took to Truth Social to write, “CNN and MSDNC, to show you how fake they are, today refused to cover one of the Biggest and Most Beautiful Events to take place in many years, the arrival at the White House of the Highly Respected President of China, Xi Jinping, and his beautiful wife, Madam Peng. The event was magnificent — Actually made for Television but, because they’re Fake News, and because they knew how good it would be, they didn’t want credit to be given to ‘TRUMP,’ they refused to be there. That’s why they have such poor Ratings.”

Consequences

While print, radio, and secondary television journalists continued their work, the major networks held out. According to The Hill, journalists from ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox News were present at the White House on Thursday, but they refused to cover the events until they had proof that their colleagues were allowed back in. This absence was particularly noticeable during the visit, as none of the major networks provided live broadcast video of Xi’s arrival at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday.

Behind the scenes, the legal battle has been as chaotic, per The Hill. On Thursday morning, despite a federal judge ruling that the administration violated the due process rights of the outlets, journalists were initially denied entry. Lawyers for the organizations told the court that the White House had repeatedly violated an overnight order to return press badges. Eventually, journalists from the three banned outlets were allowed onto the White House grounds after noon.

Even with that victory, and Trump’s Truth Social tirade, the access remained limited. The Guardian reported that journalists for CNN and MS NOW were still denied access to the state dinner held on Thursday evening. The White House told CNN that they could cover the event, but only with a photojournalist and audio technician. They explicitly excluded the network’s editorial team. 

When MS NOW reporter Laura Barrón-López attempted to gain access, she was told to talk to Steven. The Guardian noted that this referred to White House communications director Steven Cheung.

In the hearing thus far, the judge, Timothy Kelly, was reportedly skeptical of the administration’s arguments. He noted that the standard mentioned in the letters sent to the news organizations was “so vague it hardly does the trick.” 

Kelly concluded that the administration failed to provide the necessary notice and opportunity to be heard before revoking the passes. He wrote, “Plaintiffs are also likely to succeed in showing that their hard passes were revoked without constitutionally adequate due process.”

According to The Hill, the scene at the White House was chaotic throughout the day. Beyond the press issues, there were reports of friction between Chinese journalists and White House staff. Videos shared online showed Secret Service members having to physically move some Chinese journalists who appeared to refuse to clear the area on the South Lawn.

For the reporters who finally made it back onto the grounds, it was a relief to be back at their posts. MS NOW White House correspondent Akayla Gardner shared her perspective on the social platform X, writing, “It’s good to be back,” alongside a screenshot of her live shot.

As of now, the status of the television pool remains in limbo. The judge may have ordered the return of access for a 14-day period. However, there is uncertainty surrounding how the White House will treat these outlets moving forward. The administration has indicated that it plans to appeal any adverse ruling, so it’s likely we haven’t seen the end of this legal tug-of-war.