CNN, MS NOW and Politico suing Trump administration over ban
FILE-A view of the White House press briefing room on February 28, 2026 in Washington, D.C. Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
The Trump administration is being sued by CNN, MS NOW and Politico after President Donald Trump announced he would ban the media outlets from the White House.
CNN, MS NOW and Politico notified the federal government that they were filing their lawsuits in the U.S. District Court for Washington, D.C. with the possibility of an emergency hearing in the case taking place next week, Reuters reported.
CNN, MS NOW and Politico lawsuit
What they're saying:
In a joint statement from CNN, MS NOW and Politico obtained by Reuters, the news outlets wrote: "Without notice or process, the White House revoked our journalists' credentials because it objected to our reporting. Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public's right to independent journalism free from government interference."
The lawsuit aims "to protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes," the news outlets concluded.
RELATED: Trump says he is banning CNN, MSNOW and Politico from White House
The other side:
President Donald Trump defended the ban in a social media post on his Truth Social platform on Monday after the lawsuit was announced, calling the news media a security threat, without providing any evidence.
"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," Trump wrote. "It is corrupt, purposeful, pervasive, fully coordinated, and totally out of control. It is a threat to our National Security, and must be stopped, NOW!"
Trump bans CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House
The backstory:
President Donald Trump said on Sept. 18 that CNN, MS NOW and Politico would be banned from the White House, accusing the three news organizations of publishing what he described as "fake news."
Trump said the restrictions would take effect immediately and suggested that additional media outlets could face similar bans.
The Associated Press reported that White House reporters from two cable networks — Betsy Klein of CNN and Akayla Gardner of MS NOW — went live on Sept. 19 to report they’d been turned away, their press badges deactivated, when arriving for their jobs at the White House. Later, Politico said its White House reporter Cheyenne Haslett was also denied entry and had her badge taken.
All three news organizations that were banned covered the White House’s actions during the weekend. White House Correspondents Association president, Jacqui Heinrich, requested that the Trump administration immediately restore the three outlets’ access.
Trump was asked if other news companies may be targeted, and he referenced The New York Times and The Washington Post as "fake news" but said they had not been removed yet.
Moreover, The Associated Press filed its own lawsuit after being barred along with Reuters in 2025 from the group of reporters that cover Trump’s daily movements.
The Source: Information for this story was provided by Reuters, who obtained a joint statement from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico on the ban, a Truth Social post from President Donald Trump, previous FOX Local reporting, and The Associated Press. This story was reported from Washington, D.C.