Reporters for CNN, MS NOW, and Politico were denied entry to White House grounds on Saturday morning, the outlets said, one day after President Donald Trump said he was banning them for their coverage of him.
“Early today, CNN journalists were denied access to the White House grounds,” a CNN spokesperson said in a statement. “We have a right under the U.S. Constitution to do our reporting without hindrance or interference from the government.”
“This ban is an illegal assault on this fundamental right,” the spokesperson added.
A spokesperson for MS NOW said its journalists were also denied access.
In a note to Politico’s newsroom shared with Business Insider, Politico’s Global editor in chief, Jonathan Greenberger, said a Politico reporter had her press pass taken by the Secret Service.
“We stand by her and all reporters here covering the White House,” Greenberger said. “As we said yesterday, we will vigorously defend our First Amendment rights.”
President Donald Trump said on Friday that he was banning MS NOW, CNN, and Politico from the White House for what he described as their “fiction and lies.”
“Media Outlets shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States,” Trump said on Truth Social, his social media platform.
In its statement on Saturday, MS NOW said it “intends to take any and all steps necessary to defend our First Amendment rights and the essential role of independent journalism in our democracy.”
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CNN said it “will continue to report on the actions and processes of this administration without fear or favor.”
Akayla Gardner, a White House correspondent for MS NOW, said on air that an officer took her press badge after it didn’t scan.
“There was a red beeping light, and so the officer asked me to hand over my badge,” she said. “He said that it was disabled.”
Trump arrived at Camp David late Friday night, according to a White House pool report.
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This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.
