The White House appears to have discovered a rather unusual interpretation of the phrase “court order” after journalists from CNN and MS NOW were denied access to cover Chinese President Xi Jinping’s arrival for a state dinner on Thursday, just hours after U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ordered the Trump administration to restore press access for CNN, MS NOW and Politico. The development has turned an already tense White House-media dispute into something resembling a bureaucratic comedy in which the judge opened the door, but somebody apparently forgot to inform the doorman.
The latest episode followed nearly a week of restrictions imposed on the three news organizations by the current president, Donald J. Trump. Judge Kelly’s overnight ruling granted the outlets a 14-day temporary restoration of access, finding that the administration’s revocation of their credentials likely violated constitutional due-process protections.
Judge Says “Let Them In,” White House Appears to Add a Footnote
CNN and MS NOW journalists did eventually regain access to the White House grounds on Thursday after initially being turned away. But when Xi arrived for the state dinner, CNN said the White House offered a curious compromise: its coverage could proceed with a photojournalist and audio technician, while excluding the reporter and producer who normally make up its editorial team.
MS NOW reported a similar experience involving White House correspondent Laura Barrón-López, who was prevented from covering Xi’s arrival despite applying for credentials. According to the report supplied by the outlet, when she asked why she was denied, a White House staff member directed her to “talk to Steven,” apparently referring to communications director Steven Cheung. At that point, the state dinner had diplomacy on the menu and a press-access dispute apparently waiting outside with the coat check.
State Dinner Gets a Live Stream, But TV Pool Goes Quiet
The White House streamed Xi’s arrival online, meaning viewers could still watch the Chinese leader arrive with his wife, Peng Liyuan. But the dispute over press access had another consequence: the other major U.S. television networks did not provide the normal pooled live video coverage, following the broader solidarity action by networks after CNN was removed from the broadcast pool.
The confrontation is part of a wider legal and political dispute over who controls access to the White House press operation. CNN, MS NOW and Politico sued after the administration barred their journalists, while other major television networks suspended some pooled coverage in solidarity. The administration has defended its restrictions by accusing the outlets of publishing what it considers false or harmful reporting, while the affected organizations have challenged the restrictions as unconstitutional. Those competing claims remain part of the ongoing legal dispute rather than settled findings.
The latest incident therefore leaves an extraordinary question hanging over the White House: if a federal judge orders journalists’ access restored, how many different doors, credentials, teams and interpretations must be negotiated before “access restored” actually means access restored? For now, the court battle continues, the press-access dispute remains unresolved, and readers should watch OGM News for further updates as this unusual White House-media confrontation develops.Prompt 2 — Headlines
[…] […]