Ariana Baio and Maanvi Singh / The Guardian US / Sept. 21, 2026
The major US television news outlets agreed to suspend their video coverage of Donald Trump after the administration banned journalists from several outlets from entering the White House grounds.
The collective decision came after the barred outlets – CNN, MS Now and Politico – sued the administration on Monday, saying the president’s actions were a violation of their first amendment rights.
The ban was an extraordinary escalation of Trump’s battle against news outlets. After a coalition of networks including ABC, CBS, Fox News and NBC – which along with CNN form a press “pool” that share the responsibilities of capturing and distributing footage of the president carried by news outlets worldwide – announced they would cease coverage in solidarity with the barred outlets, the White House promoted its own feed online, branding it “Trump TV”. The channel purported to show “top past moments, announcements, and the latest and greatest from the administration all in one place”.
It is extremely rare for a president to travel or make public appearances without the accompaniment of a representative from the White House television pool. Network cameras have provided coverage of the president since 1950.
On Monday, the ban against CNN meant that no broadcaster was covering Trump’s midday ribbon-cutting to unveil a new White House helipad. Although the White House provided a livestream, without professional boom mics and audio setup, the president’s remarks were inaudible over the sounds of a helicopter’s engine running in the background.
The president abruptly announced his ban against outlets this weekend in a Truth Social post, saying he had enough of “purposely negative stories” about him. Journalists had their press badges confiscated by Secret Service on Saturday.
“Effective today, the TV pool will not be covering events designated as pool coverage of the President,” Bryan Boughton, Fox News’s Washington bureau chief who is also currently serving on as TV pool chair, wrote in an email to pool members Monday. The role is rotated each quarter. “This follows the White House’s position preventing CNN from fulfilling its assigned pool duties,” said Boughton.
In a show of support with the banned outlets, several outlets, including the Washington Post, the New York Times and the Associated Press, said they would not publish or distribute images taken as part of the White House photography pool including Trump’s departure on Marine One and his events at the United Nations in New York, until midnight ET. In a statement, the Washington Post described the action as part of a “collective effort”.
The five news networks, including CNN, wrote in a joint statement: “The public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government. No administration should restrict a news organization because it objects to its reporting.”
Although the broadcast networks said they would withhold televised coverage, the print, radio and wire service press pool continues to provide reports detailing Trump’s movements throughout the day.
Hours after the broadcast networks’ announcement, the Washington Post said it would also withhold its photographs of presidential events from being published until after midnight ET to support banned outlets.
On Friday, Trump abruptly announced he was banning CNN, Politico and MS Now from the White House because, he believes, they “constantly write or report FICTION and LIES”. On Saturday, reporters and other staff from the news organizations were denied access to the White House.
Other media outlets and first amendment advocacy groups responded by condemning Trump’s ban, calling it an infringement on the right to a free press.
On Monday, CNN, Politico and MS Now filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration, asking a federal judge to temporarily block the enforcement of the ban and restore the reporters’ passes to the White House.
On Truth Social, Trump defended his decisions, insisting that his ban was not “instituting an assault on the Free Press”, but instead addressing “national security” threats – a claim the US president has recently used to justify building a triumphal arch and the White House ballroom.
Does anyone else see this as a breakdown in our society ?
I’m sure there is no shortage of people ready to blame Trump exclusively, and he certainly is responsible for much of it.
But is he responsible for all of it ? Doesn’t it “take two to tango” ?
In my personal observation, television media transitioned from being a trusted source of information in the 1960s to the farcical, 3 ring circus it is today completely because of money.
The FCC requires all broadcasters to operate “in the public interest”. For a good laugh, see their reminder published earlier this year at:
https://docs.fcc.gov/public/attachments/DA-26-530A1.txt
There’s not a station I know of that fits the bill. Because they all require “viewer support” in some form or another. Watch their ads, donate to their fundraisers, buy their streaming subscriptions, etc. They are all about making money, and not simply a reasonable profit which no one would deny them.
No, the “biggies” are all about ratings, sweeps weeks, awards, etc … anything that lets them charge more.
And the truth ?
“What is truth ?” (Pontius Pilate, 33AD)
“You can’t handle the truth !” (Colonel Jessop, 1982)
We all have our versions of “truth”, and anyone else’s version is an uncomfortable one.
In light of this, isn’t The Media’s responsibility to report what is known, what is verifiably true ? And if there are multiple “truths” to report them equally, without bias as much as is possible ?
Yet somewhere along in the 70s The Media decided this wasn’t good enough, and realizing its power, it changed its mission from reporting the news to shaping and interpreting the news. The reporters became active participants rather than impartial observers.
We find it acceptable when a film crew documenting wildlife fails to intervene to protect the film’s protagonist. It may break our hearts, but we “allow nature to takes its course”.
But this approach has long ago been abandoned in US “journalism”.
HuffPost, Mother Jones, The Guardian (source of this article) – impartial and unbiased ?
OAN, Newsmax, New York Post – impartial and unbiased ?
Hardly.
OK, none of those are TV stations, I referenced them to illustrate the point (plus the article is from the Guardian)
You think CNN is unbiased ? What about Fox News ?
The fact is they all suck ! They are nothing more than echo chambers for the unthinking masses, who are willing to have their beliefs and opinions handed to them. Left and right, they’re both the same.
The Media has lost respect for the Office of the President because they have no respect for the holder of the office. You dislike Trump ? I can’t argue too much with you, he has done an awful lot to earn the dislike.
But if you are a news organization operating in the public interest, it is YOUR OBLIGATION to cover the Presidency, and yes that includes the President himself.
So where is this escalation going ? No one will cover the president ? He’ll offer us “Trump TV” ? WTF people, this is real life and not some stupid scripted drama series.
What we need going forward is for the cameras to show not only the president but the media in attendance as well. Show us the media buffoons who try to “be the story”, who want to embarrass the president and make themselves look cool in the process. Trust me, Trump doesn’t need any help in this regard, he is perfectly capable of embarrassing himself as we have seen.
But if the media can’t take the high road and perform in a professional manner, kick ’em out and hold them responsible for failing in their duties, just as they are ever so willing to hold the president accountable for his failings.