CNN reporters have been barred from traveling with US President Donald Trump on Saturday, in the latest move by the White House to restrict the network’s access.
CNN had been scheduled to serve as the television network in the press pool accompanying Trump on his trip to Tennessee, where he is due to attend a University of Tennessee vs. University of Texas football game in Knoxville.
However, a schedule released by the White House on Friday evening did not list CNN or any of the major TV networks in the pool rotation.Instead, the guidance listed only a “Secondary TV” correspondent and crew from Lindell TV, a pro-Trump outlet run by businessman Mike Lindell, a close ally of the president.
Some reports indicated that Real America’s Voice News was also expected to take the primary spot.
The press pool is a rotating group of journalists who travel with the president and share coverage with other outlets because of limited space.
CNN said no outlet was listed as a direct replacement in the White House note for its assigned role.
The exclusion comes days after Trump sought to ban three outlets, CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House, accusing them of providing only negative coverage.
A federal judge ordered the administration to temporarily restore their access, ruling the ban was likely unconstitutional.
Journalists from the three outlets regained entry on Thursday, though some later reported continued restrictions, including at a state dinner for Chinese President Xi Jinping.
Earlier in the week, while CNN’s White House access was still blocked, the top five US broadcasters (ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox and NBC) jointly suspended pool coverage in solidarity.
They said: “The public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government. No administration should restrict a news organization because it objects to its reporting.”
CNN’s Jim Sciutto described the pool system as a long-standing tradition designed to document history, adding that “this president alone appears intent on trashing that tradition because of news coverage he does not like.”
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