CNN was blocked from flying with US President Donald Trump on Air Force One for his trip to Tennessee on Saturday, the latest episode in a tense standoff between the White House and the media.
The broadcaster had been scheduled to travel with Trump for the college football game between the University of Tennessee and the University of Texas at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville. But a White House media schedule released late Friday did not include CNN. The BBC requested comment from the White House, but no immediate response was available.
CNN reported that no other news outlet took its place on the president’s tentative itinerary. This move comes after Trump last week banned CNN, Politico, and MSNBC reporters from the White House. He accused them of producing “fiction or lies” about his administration.
All three outlets said they planned legal action, arguing that Trump’s ban violated their constitutional rights to free speech and freedom of the press.
In an unusual show of solidarity, ABC, CBS, Fox News, and NBC paused their White House coverage in protest. The White House responded by launching its own streaming channel, Trump TV, ahead of the UN General Assembly in New York.
A federal judge ruled that the ban on news outlets was likely unconstitutional, ordering the White House to allow them back in, at least temporarily. Despite this, some CNN and MSNBC reporters were still denied entry to cover the arrival of Chinese leader Xi Jinping at a state dinner on Thursday.
On Saturday, Trump renewed his criticism of CNN and other media outlets in a series of posts online, calling them “fake news” and saying, “FAKE NEWS SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED IN THE WHITE HOUSE.”
A White House communications account on X (formerly Twitter) added, “contrary to what the Fake News wants you to believe, they don’t just get to have free rein into every part of the White House, every event and every press call.”
Regular television coverage of the White House resumed on Friday after reporters were allowed back inside.
The president’s trip to Tennessee was set for midday local time on Saturday. The football game between the University of Tennessee and the University of Texas is a major sporting event, drawing large crowds to Neyland Stadium in Knoxville.
This latest development adds to the ongoing tension between the Trump administration and major news organisations. The ban and its partial lifting highlight the fraught relationship between the White House and the press, with legal battles and public disputes over access and coverage continuing to play out.
According to Joy Online.
