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By Susan Heavey and Jonathan Stempel and Helen Coster
WASHINGTON, Sept 21 (Reuters) – U.S. news outlets CNN, MS NOW and Politico filed a lawsuit against U.S. President Donald Trump and other members of his administration on Monday for barring them from entering the White House, alleging that this violated their rights to freedom of speech and freedom of the press, guaranteed by the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution.
The media outlets are seeking an injunction to block Trump's measure in a federal court in Washington, D.C., and may have emergency hearings on the case as early as this week.
“If left unchallenged, this measure threatens press freedom and the public’s right to independent journalism, free from government interference,” the outlets wrote in a joint statement. “It is not up to the government to decide what the press should report or publish.”
Trump announced the ban on social media on Friday and defended it in another post on Monday, claiming, without providing evidence, that the media posed a threat to national security.
“The White House is not launching an attack on the free press, which I highly value. It is launching an attack on FAKE NEWS,” Trump wrote on Monday. “It is a threat to our national security and must be stopped, NOW!”
Previous presidents have clashed with the press, but Trump's campaign against the media has been unprecedented. He has subverted decades of tradition by denying basic access to many major news organizations, launching personal attacks on journalists for their reporting, and promoting new media outlets deemed more favorable to the government. He has also filed a series of lawsuits against news organizations.
CNN is one of five news organizations – along with ABC, CBS, Fox News, and NBC – that make up the main group providing television coverage of the White House. They share the costs of covering the president, take turns organizing the coverage, and share the footage with media outlets across the country.
CNN, which was scheduled to cover Trump's trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly on Monday, was unable to provide the broadcast package.
In response, the other major TV networks suspended coverage of the presidential package, effectively eliminating the most important video source for White House events.
“We would like to inform you that, starting today (Monday), the TV package will no longer cover events designated as part of the president’s package coverage,” said Bryan Boughton, who heads Fox News’ Washington bureau and is the current president of the TV package, in an email on Monday.
“This stems from the White House’s position of preventing CNN from fulfilling its assigned obligations in the pool,” Boughton added. “There will be no replacement package.”
"BAN ON THE FREE PRESS"
Trump's latest move comes as his fellow Republicans seek to defend their narrow majorities in Congress in the November midterm legislative elections. Polls show public opinion is turning against Republicans, and Trump's own approval ratings are near historic lows.
CNN, MS NOW, and Politico reported on Saturday that their journalists were barred from entering the White House and had their press credentials confiscated. Over the weekend, they positioned journalists across the street from the White House and continued their coverage.
Trump addressed what he called a "free press ban" at an event in the Oval Office on Friday, stating that no specific incident prompted the measure.
Asked which other news organizations might be targeted by the measure, Trump cited the New York Times and the Washington Post as "fake news," but stated that they had not been removed.
The Associated Press, the White House Correspondents' Association, and other entities criticized Trump's ban, citing the fundamental American right to freedom of expression and demanding that access be immediately restored. The AP filed its own lawsuit after being barred, along with Reuters last year, from being part of the group of reporters covering the president's daily movements.
During his first term, Trump attempted to revoke or suspend the White House credentials of two correspondents from CNN and Playboy magazine, but federal judges ordered their passes reinstated.
(Reporting by Susan Heavey in Washington; Additional reporting by Andrew Goudsward and Mike Scarcella in Washington; Nupur Anand, Jonathan Stempel and Helen Coster in New York and Jaspreet Singh, Anusha Shah and Anhata Rooprai in Bengaluru)
