K-EnterTech Hub | Media Policy
CNN, MS NOW and Politico credentials revoked as legal challenges and media-industry implications widen
President Donald Trump barred CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House. Trump announced on Truth Social on September 18 that access for the three organizations was terminated “effective immediately.” The next morning, their reporters were turned away at White House entrances and Secret Service personnel collected their credentials.
Trump said the action was based on the outlets’ coverage. He accused them of reporting false and fabricated stories and said other organizations could face similar treatment. MS NOW reported that Trump later told reporters in the Oval Office that the decision was not tied to one article but to coverage accumulated over several years. The White House issued no separate explanation of the standards or process used to impose the ban.
The administration has restricted news access before. In November 2018, during Trump’s first term, the White House revoked CNN reporter Jim Acosta’s credential and restored it after a federal court order. In February 2025, it excluded the Associated Press from Oval Office and Air Force One coverage after the outlet continued using “Gulf of Mexico.” The AP lawsuit remains pending. That same month, the White House also took control of pool assignments previously managed by the White House Correspondents’ Association, or WHCA.
This time, the response has extended across the industry. The three outlets said they were considering legal action. The WHCA, led by Fox News anchor Jacqui Heinrich, called for immediate restoration of access. The Associated Press, The New York Times and The Washington Post also issued statements.
On September 18, Reuters separately reported that Paramount, which is seeking to acquire CNN parent Warner Bros. Discovery, was negotiating a settlement with 12 states and that independent monitoring of CNN content was being discussed as a possible condition. The overlapping disputes have put CNN’s editorial independence under additional scrutiny.
Credentials deactivated at 8 a.m. after CNN covered the vice president in the pool the day before
CBS News reported that MS NOW White House correspondent Akayla Gardner and a camera operator were turned away at about 8 a.m. on September 19. Gardner said the access system showed that her credential had been deactivated; a security officer told her that the reason was outside his authority. CNN senior White House correspondent Betsy Klein and a camera operator also left after their credentials were taken. Politico said White House correspondent Cheyenne Haslett was denied entry.
It was not clear on September 18 whether the announcement would be enforced immediately. CNN cited sources who said some White House staff, including members of the communications team, had not been notified in advance. CNN journalists continued working from their White House workspace that evening, and a CNN team traveled with Vice President JD Vance as the television pool. By September 19, the workspaces used by all three outlets were empty, NBC News reported.
CNN is part of the five-network television pool that travels with the president. The Associated Press warned that removing CNN could disrupt the five-network rotation. CNN called the action “an unlawful attack on our fundamental rights.” Politico editor Jonathan Greenberger said the organization would vigorously defend its First Amendment rights, and MS NOW said it would take all necessary steps to restore access.
WHCA led by a Fox News anchor joins AP, The New York Times and The Washington Post
WHCA President Jacqui Heinrich demanded immediate restoration of the three outlets’ access. She warned that excluding an organization because of its reporting would create a standard that could later be applied to any news organization. Lauren Easton, a spokesperson for the Associated Press, said no outlet should face government retaliation because of the language it uses. The New York Times, The Washington Post and press-freedom groups also described the action as an attack on press freedom.
Opposition also emerged among Fox News contributors often identified with conservative audiences. Former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer said, “You should argue and win, not ban them. Someday they will ban us.” Legal scholar and Fox News contributor Jonathan Turley called the exclusion of disfavored outlets a dangerous precedent. Conservative commentator Meghan McCain likewise wrote that expelling outlets because officials dislike their coverage is dangerous.
The administration and Republican congressional leaders were largely silent. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said he fully supported the president’s decision, and right-wing podcaster Benny Johnson welcomed it. The campaign of former Representative Mike Rogers, who is running for the U.S. Senate in Michigan with Trump’s endorsement, said it had invited all three organizations to a September 19 news conference.
Democrats responded sharply. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer wrote on X that Trump had “just done what dictators throughout history have done.” Representative Jamie Raskin, the ranking Democrat on the House Judiciary Committee, said news organizations should consider boycotting White House coverage if the restrictions continue. Democrats characterized the move as an attempt to divert attention from administration failures. The New York Times noted that Republicans are approaching the November midterm elections amid voter concern over prices and the war with Iran.
First Amendment specialists said the restrictions are likely unconstitutional. Bruce D. Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, told CNN that such a ban is “entirely unconstitutional.” Once the White House opens press facilities to some journalists, he said, it cannot exclude others because officials dislike their reporting. Jameel Jaffer, executive director of Columbia University’s Knight First Amendment Institute, told NBC News that the outlets would likely prevail if they sued. The Freedom of the Press Foundation urged legal action, and the National Press Club called the decision an unprecedented infringement of press freedom.
A 1977 ruling bars arbitrary denials even as Trump says the action matters regardless of the courts
The principal precedent is the 1977 decision in Sherrill v. Knight. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit held that once the White House makes press facilities available, it may not deny access arbitrarily and must provide due process before restricting a credential. The same standard was applied in the 2018 Acosta case. After CNN sued, a federal judge appointed by Trump ordered temporary restoration because the administration had not followed adequate procedures. CNN withdrew the case after the White House formally restored the credential.
In the Associated Press case, a trial court ordered access restored in April 2025. An appeals court stayed that order and allowed the White House to exclude the AP from small, capacity-limited areas such as the Oval Office and Air Force One. CNBC reported, however, that the court noted that permanent credentials for larger spaces such as the East Room could not be denied arbitrarily or because of a journalist’s speech. The new action is broader because it blocks entry to the White House grounds and deactivates permanent credentials rather than limiting access to particular spaces.
Trump said in the Oval Office on September 18 that he thought it was useful to make the point “whether it holds up in court or not.” Asked whether the purpose was to intimidate the press, he said no and added that he wanted honest journalism. As of September 19, there were no reports that any of the three organizations had filed a complaint.
Paramount negotiates with 12 states as independent monitoring of CNN becomes a settlement issue
The access dispute comes as CNN’s ownership may change. Paramount agreed to acquire all shares of Warner Bros. Discovery for $31 per share in cash, a transaction valued at about $110 billion. WBD shareholders approved the proposal on April 23. The U.S. Justice Department concluded its antitrust review and cleared the transaction on June 12, and the European Commission granted conditional approval on July 22.
The remaining obstacle is a lawsuit filed in July by California Attorney General Rob Bonta and attorneys general from 11 other states seeking to block the merger. The Writers Guild of America has filed a separate suit. Paramount said on July 24 that it would not close the transaction before a court ruling or June 1, 2027. Trial is scheduled for March 2027. If the transaction remains open after September 30, Paramount must pay WBD shareholders a quarterly delay fee of $0.25 per share. Reuters estimated the cost at about $7 million a day.
The Wall Street Journal reported on September 18 that Paramount and the 12 states had made substantial progress in settlement talks. Reuters cited sources who said an agreement could be announced as early as the weekend and that independent monitoring of CNN content and commitments on theatrical releases were under discussion. Paramount shares rose about 7% in after-hours trading and WBD shares gained 8.4%. The California Department of Justice declined to confirm negotiations, and Paramount did not comment. No settlement had been announced as of September 20. Court-ordered settlement talks are scheduled for October 14 and 15.
Members of Congress have criticized Paramount CEO David Ellison over claims that CBS News coverage was adjusted to favor Trump and have raised concerns about how CNN would be operated after the acquisition, Reuters reported. There is no report directly linking the White House credential ban to the settlement negotiations.
MS NOW parent Versant reports $1.644 billion in quarterly revenue as Trump revives Politico subscription claim
Trump described MS NOW as an outlet that changed its name from MSNBC because it lacked viewers and credibility. Parent company Versant was separated from Comcast on January 2 and trades on Nasdaq. Versant’s August 6 earnings report said MS NOW viewership increased year over year for seven consecutive months through June, with second-quarter viewing up 14%. Combined YouTube and TikTok views reached about 3 billion in the first half.
Versant’s second-quarter revenue fell 3.8% year over year to $1.644 billion. Linear distribution revenue declined 6.3% to $954 million as pay-TV subscriptions fell. Advertising revenue decreased 0.6% to $423 million, while platform revenue, which includes Fandango and GolfNow, rose 0.8% to $225 million. Net income fell 30.1% to $211 million. Versant raised its full-year revenue outlook to $6.2 billion to $6.45 billion and is preparing direct-to-consumer products for CNBC and MS NOW.
Versant’s second-quarter revenue fell 3.8%, primarily because of lower linear distribution revenue. Source: Versant Q2 results released August 6
Trump also claimed that the Biden administration illegally paid Politico $8 million in subscription fees. Politico, a political news organization acquired by Germany’s Axel Springer in 2021, said on X that claims it received government subsidies were false and had already been disproved.
White House directly controls the pool as five networks exceed 350 appearances and small outlets total 59
The White House has directly assigned the presidential pool since February 2025, replacing the WHCA process. An Axios analysis published May 4 found that 50 organizations had rotated through a new-media pool seat since August 2025 and that at least 12 had fewer than 10 employees. Over the same period, CBS, ABC, Fox, NBC and CNN accumulated more than 350 appearances. Outlets with fewer than 10 employees recorded 59 appearances in total. MS NOW retained a pool position but appeared far less often than Fox or CNN.
Press-access disputes have also spread across federal departments. The Pentagon introduced new access rules last year, prompting many organizations to withdraw their reporters. After a federal court invalidated parts of the policy, the Defense Department issued revised rules. A court also blocked the revision, but that order has been stayed while the appeal proceeds. In August, the Treasury Department denied credentials to some reporters who applied to cover a Group of 20 meeting in North Carolina.
South Korea relies on press-corps rules after the 2022 MBC plane exclusion and a two-week suspension this year
U.S. litigation over White House access has focused on due process and the First Amendment. The 1977 precedent requires procedures before a credential is restricted, and the trial court in the AP case rejected exclusion based on editorial language. If the three outlets sue, the central question will be whether those standards apply not only to capacity-limited areas but also to access to the White House grounds as a whole.
In South Korea, restrictions on presidential-office access have generally been administered under press-corps rules and internal presidential-office standards. In November 2022, the Yoon Suk Yeol administration excluded MBC reporters from the presidential aircraft. The senior press secretary later asked the press-corps leadership for views on three possible sanctions: cancellation of registration, suspension from the press room, or replacement of the reporter. The group declined to respond because the rules did not provide a clear basis, Edaily reported on November 21, 2022.
After taking office, the Lee Jae Myung administration installed cameras in the briefing room to livestream question-and-answer sessions and restored credentials that had been revoked under the previous administration. Three YouTube-based outlets began covering the office last year, and four more have since been added. Media Today reported on February 27 that a reporter for Kim Ou-joon’s News Factory was suspended for two weeks beginning March 1 after a presidential itinerary was disclosed on air in violation of a security embargo.
The rules supporting that discipline have not been made public. In July 2025, the presidential office rejected a freedom-of-information request from the Korea Internet Journalists Association seeking the full text of the regulations governing registration and operations for presidential-office reporters.
A lawsuit would first test temporary restoration after CNN won relief three days after filing in 2018
If the outlets sue, the first issue will be whether the court temporarily restores their credentials before deciding the merits. CNN sued on November 13, 2018, six days after Acosta’s credential was revoked; the court ordered temporary restoration three days later. Brown, Jaffer and other First Amendment specialists expect the organizations to have a strong case this time as well. A final decision could take much longer. The AP case filed in February 2025 remains on appeal 19 months later, while access to the Oval Office and Air Force One remains restricted.
Even if a court orders restoration, similar restrictions could recur. Trump said the action had value even if it did not survive judicial review and warned that other organizations could be barred. Because the White House controls pool assignments, it could fill CNN’s television-pool turn with another outlet. Raskin has proposed a collective news-media boycott of White House coverage.
The business calendars of the three outlets also intersect with the dispute. Paramount begins incurring an estimated $7 million in daily delay fees on October 1. Settlement discussions with the 12 states are scheduled for October 14 and 15, and trial is set for March 2027. If a settlement requires independent monitoring of CNN content, the document would define who evaluates CNN’s editorial independence and under what standards after the acquisition. Versant is preparing a direct-to-consumer MS NOW product. Courthouse News reported that federal-agency Politico subscriptions were among the first expenses cut by the Department of Government Efficiency after Trump returned to office.
CNN said it would continue covering the administration despite the ban. The U.S. midterm election is November 3. Unless access is restored, the three organizations will spend the remaining six weeks covering the White House from outside the complex. The immediate questions are when a court might rule on temporary relief and how the White House will revise the television-pool rotation.
Calls for transparent access and disciplinary rules continue in South Korea. Media Today proposed in June 2025 that the presidential office establish a committee with representatives from several sectors to discuss admission, removal, discipline and pool rules and to publish meeting records. With seven YouTube-based outlets now accredited, debate is likely to continue over who sets the standards for admission and discipline and how those standards are disclosed.
Notes
Currency conversion: Korean won figures use $1 = KRW 1,383.3, the September 18 Seoul foreign-exchange market close reported by MoneyToday.
Quotation policy: Text in quotation marks is translated from remarks published by the cited outlet. Narrative without quotation marks summarizes reporting. Third-party remarks published by The New York Times, Reuters and other outlets are cited through those reports.
The cumulative pool-appearance figures are repeated from a May K-EnterTech Hub article based on the Axios analysis published May 4.
The opening graphic is a K-EnterTech Hub illustration, not a news photograph.
Sources
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