CNN, MS NOW and Politico said Monday they had notified the federal government that they were filing a lawsuit challenging the revocation of their journalists’ White House credentials.
The organizations said the administration acted because it objected to their reporting. Their planned lawsuit seeks to protect their First Amendment rights and restore their White House access.
In a joint statement posted on X, the outlets said the White House acted without notice or a formal process.
“Without notice or process, the White House revoked our journalists’ credentials because it objected to our reporting.”
— Joint statement from CNN, MS NOW and Politico
They said allowing the action to stand would threaten press freedom and the public’s right to independent journalism. The case was expected to be filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, with CNN reporting that emergency hearings could occur this week.
In a Truth Social post Monday, President Donald Trump denied that the administration was attacking press freedom.
“The White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, something which I cherish. It is instituting an assault on the FAKE NEWS.”
— President Donald Trump
Trump described what he called fake news as corrupt, coordinated and a threat to national security. He did not identify a specific report from CNN, MS NOW or Politico in Monday’s post.
The dispute began Friday when Trump announced that the three organizations would be barred from the White House. Reporters from all three outlets were turned away the following day.
CNN White House correspondent Betsy Klein and MS NOW correspondent Akayla Gardner reported that their credentials had been deactivated when they arrived for work. Gardner said an officer asked her to surrender her disabled badge but told her the decision came from above him.
Politico said Secret Service officers denied White House reporter Cheyenne Haslett entry and confiscated her pass. The organization argued that targeting news outlets because of their coverage raised First Amendment concerns.
Politico pledged to continue reporting fairly and accurately on the White House, defend its constitutional rights and support Haslett and its White House team.
CNN said it stood behind its journalists and their reporting. The network maintained that its reporters have a constitutional right to work without government interference and called the ban an illegal restriction on that right.
MS NOW said its journalists were denied access to the White House complex and that it would take the steps necessary to protect their ability to report.
In his Friday announcement, Trump said the ban was effective immediately and accused the outlets of repeatedly publishing “fiction and lies.” He also suggested that other news organizations could face similar action.
Trump also alleged that Politico received an illegal $8 million government subscription during the Biden administration. His post did not provide documentation supporting the characterization of the payments as illegal.
White House Correspondents’ Association President Jacqui Heinrich called on the administration to restore the three organizations’ access. She warned that a standard used to exclude one outlet because of its coverage could later be applied to others.
“The American people, through a free and independent press, must be able to scrutinize those elected to power.”
— Jacqui Heinrich, White House Correspondents’ Association president
The dispute now moves to federal court, where the organizations are seeking the restoration of their journalists’ White House credentials.
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