Major news outlets boycott White House pool as Trump heads to UN
The lawsuit filed by CNN, MS NOW and Politico against President Trump over the White House press ban is set for a Wednesday hearing, NPR reported Tuesday. The administration cut access to the White House for the three outlets’ journalists, accusing them of covering the president unfairly, according to NPR’s Up First newsletter.
The lawsuit argues that the news organizations’ First Amendment rights protect them from punishment by the federal government for their speech. Major TV networks supported CNN, which had been scheduled to provide shared pool coverage of Trump’s departure from the White House and visit to the United Nations in New York City. CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox were not listed for pool coverage in the White House daily briefing, Up First reported.
Beyond the major networks, organizations including The New York Times, NPR and The Washington Post announced they would suspend use of pool photographs and audio until further notice. NPR’s Brian Mann told Up First that the latest move has sparked a strong, unified response across the media landscape.
With just over 40 days before the midterm elections, many of Trump’s Republican allies are urging him to focus on voter issues instead of his grievances with journalists, according to Up First. Trump has pressured news organizations throughout his second term with lawsuits and regulatory threats.
Trump is set to address world leaders Tuesday at the United Nations General Assembly. With approval ratings below 40 percent — partly due to economic concerns stemming from the war in Iran — Trump is seeking to boost his image just ahead of the midterms, Up First reported. The president’s high-profile week of diplomacy will also see him hosting Chinese President Xi Jinping in the nation’s capital.
Trump plans to present himself as a peacemaker and highlight various deals he has brokered globally, according to conversations NPR’s Franco Ordoñez has had with the White House. Ordoñez reported that Trump is likely to defend his Iran policy and highlight a new security agreement with Denmark regarding Greenland. The Iranian president will also be at the event and is set to speak Wednesday.
Richard Fontaine, who served in the George W. Bush administration, told Ordoñez that meaningful diplomacy will happen in private meetings rather than at the UN Security Council or General Assembly. Trump has scheduled one-on-one discussions with Gulf leaders, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham and Venezuela’s interim President Delcy Rodríguez, according to Up First.