The week’s biggest press freedom story started with a Friday Truth Social post and escalated all the way to the floor of the United Nations General Assembly as the president addressed world leaders on Tuesday.
On September 18th, President Trump announced he was banning CNN, Politico, and MS NOW from the White House, citing what he called their “constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!” Reporters from all three outlets were denied entry to the White House complex over the weekend and had their press credentials physically confiscated by the Secret Service. The announcement caught a number of senior White House aides off guard — chief of staff Susie Wiles was reportedly not in the West Wing when the ban was posted.
The move triggered an unusually unified response from the broader press community, with Fox News, ABC, CBS, NBC, and CNN issuing a rare joint statement: “No administration should restrict a news organization because it objects to its reporting.” Television networks also refused to provide pool coverage of the president’s activities on Monday in solidarity with the banned outlets. The White House Correspondents’ Association condemned the ban, as did right-leaning voices — CNBC host Joe Kernen pressed Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent on the move, saying, “I just don’t think this is something we do in this country.”
CNN, Politico, and MS NOW filed a lawsuit on First Amendment grounds Monday, and a federal judge ordered the Department of Justice to respond to an injunction request by Tuesday, with a hearing scheduled for Wednesday.
The confrontation then followed Trump to New York, where he was attending the UN General Assembly. When CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins asked him a question outside the General Assembly, Trump gestured at her and told reporters, “I’m surprised that CNN is here covering me. You should not be here covering me.” Collins replied on air: “The United Nations allowed us in here, sir.” Trump acknowledged he expected the presiding judge — who ordered the White House to restore CNN correspondent Jim Acosta’s credentials in 2018 — to rule against him, but gave no indication he would reverse course voluntarily.