Donald Trump's Helipad Remarks Go Nearly Unheard After TV Networks Quit Pool
CNN, Politico and MS NOW face a court hearing Wednesday over their revoked White House credentials as the five-network TV pool stays dark.
President Donald Trump's remarks at the unveiling of a new White House helipad on Monday were barely audible in live footage, according to the BBC, after the five major U.S. television networks stopped covering presidential pool events in protest at the White House ban on CNN, Politico and MS NOW.
The three outlets have sued the administration, and a hearing is scheduled for Wednesday, the BBC reported.
Why it matters
The television pool supplies the video and audio feeds that most news organizations rely on to show presidential events. Its suspension leaves the public seeing and hearing less of the president, while the lawsuit tests whether a White House can revoke access from outlets because of their coverage.
Key points
- The five-network TV pool of CNN, ABC, CBS, Fox News and NBC halted coverage of presidential pool events on Monday.
- CNN, Politico and MS NOW sued the administration after their White House badges were disabled, with a hearing set for Wednesday.
- Trump called the outlets "Third Rate Clowns" and said his team would appeal.
How the White House ban on CNN, Politico and MS NOW unfolded
Trump announced Friday that CNN, Politico and MS NOW would be banned from the White House, saying their coverage amounted to "fake news" and "fictions and lies" about his team, according to the BBC. A day later, journalists from the three outlets found their entry badges had been disabled.
Al Jazeera reported that by Monday the organizations had sued, alleging the White House violated their First Amendment rights. The White House has defended the decision, and Vice President JD Vance and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have backed the administration's position, according to Al Jazeera.
Fox News Washington bureau chief Bryan Boughton, who holds the rotating chair of the TV pool, wrote in an email seen by the BBC that "effective today, the TV pool will not be covering events designated as pool coverage" of the president.
In a joint statement, the five networks said: "The public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government. No administration should restrict a news organisation because it objects to its reporting."
Trump, Kaitlan Collins and the UN General Assembly
The boycott did not affect Trump's speech to the United Nations on Tuesday, which was carried by outlets outside the pool, the BBC reported. CNN Chief White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins attended the UN meetings and asked the president a question as he spoke to reporters.
"I'm surprised CNN is here covering me… you should not be here covering me," Trump said, according to the BBC. Collins responded that journalist credentials for the General Assembly come from the UN rather than the White House, the BBC reported.
Trump called the outlets "Third Rate Clowns" and "Crooked and Corrupt Press," according to the BBC, and wrote in a Truth Social post that "Fake News people and publications that only write negatively, and who violate our National Security by writing false and defamatory stories with unknown 'sources,' shouldn't be allowed access to the most important Office anywhere in the World."
Sources
- What is the White House pool and why is it in a row with Trump? — Timeline of the ban and badge revocation, the networks' pool walkout and joint statement, the helipad audio problem, the UN exchange with Kaitlan Collins, Trump's Truth Social post and the Wednesday hearing.
- The White House press pool: What is it and how does it work? — The lawsuit's First Amendment claim and Vance and Rubio backing the White House.