CNN, MS NOW, Politico denied White House access after Trump accuses them of ‘fake news’

The White House denied access to journalists from CNN, MS Now, and Politico on Saturday. The news outlets reported that their teams' press passes were confiscated when their journalists arrived at the White House. According to CNN and MS Now, their reporters were told their press passes had been deactivated, but no explanation was given.

US President Donald Trump had announced on Friday that he was banning the outlets from the White House, accusing them of "reporting FAKE NEWS" and writing "fiction or lies" about his administration. The move has been criticized by press freedom advocates, with CNN calling it "an illegal assault" on its constitutional right to do journalism.

The affected news outlets have signalled that they may contest the ban, citing the US Constitution's First Amendment protections for free speech and a free press. They have stated that they will continue reporting on the Trump administration and intend to "defend our First Amendment rights".

Brief written by urgent.news from The Times of Israel, South China Morning Post, Channel News Asia, Jerusalem Post, MyJoyOnline Ghana — 5 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.