CNN v. Trump

Court: U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia

Date Filed: Sept. 23, 2026

Background: On Sept. 18, 2026, President Donald Trump announced that he planned to ban CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House for reporting what he called “fake news.” The next day, journalists from all three news outlets were blocked from accessing the White House.

CNN, MS NOW, and Politico sued the Trump administration, calling the ban a “direct assault on the First Amendment.” The lawsuit asked the district court to quickly rule the ban unconstitutional and to block the White House from enforcing it. 

Our Position: Reporters Committee, joined by 50 media outlets and industry groups, including the White House Correspondents’ Association, filed a friend-of-the-court brief urging the court to immediately restore White House access to CNN, MS NOW, and Politico, arguing that Trump’s decision to ban them for what he perceives as “negative” coverage violates the First Amendment.

• White House correspondents work in spaces protected under the First Amendment, and they have historically played an essential role in informing the public about the office of the presidency.

• Stripping journalists and news outlets of their rights because of perceived editorial viewpoint violates decades of U.S. Supreme Court jurisprudence and is impermissible in any type of forum, including the White House.

Quote: “A ban like this would be flatly unconstitutional,” Reporters Committee President Bruce D. Brown said shortly after Trump announced the ban. “The First Amendment is clear that once the White House invites in some journalists, it can’t ban others because it doesn’t like their reporting. This is textbook viewpoint discrimination and will be quickly struck down by the courts if challenged.

“At a time when the administration is on the defensive in a wide range of court battles with the news media, today’s attack is more than just one more provocation. It makes even plainer what is at the heart of these cases, whether it is the misuse of the FCC against broadcasters or the expulsion of journalists from the Pentagon — that the administration will come after you if it doesn’t like what you report. The president’s words are once again the best evidence of his malignant purpose.”

Updates: 

• On Thursday, Sept. 24, 2026, the district court ordered the Trump administration to restore White House access to CNN, MS NOW, and Politico for 14 days, concluding that Trump’s ban on the news outlets likely violated their constitutional rights. Following the order, journalists from the three news outlets were once again blocked from entering the White House grounds, but the Trump administration later restored their access.

• On Sept. 28, 2026, CNN, MS NOW, and Politico asked the court to issue a preliminary injunction blocking the press ban until the case is resolved.