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No cameras on Trump's UN trip as White House media ban row intensifies | Here's what we know
White House press pool chair, Bryan Boughton of Fox News, said that "there will be no replacement pool put in place."
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Amid the ongoing conflict between the media and the Trump administration, the White House press pool will reportedly not send a camera to replace CNN for US President Donald Trump's trip to the United Nations General Assembly.
This comes after Trump blocked CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House, after which fellow TV networks joined forces and refused to assign another broadcaster to the pool. Track live updates on UNGA 2026
Additionally, CNN, MS NOW, and Politico sued Trump and other members of his administration on Monday for banning them from the White House grounds. The media outlets said Trump's move violated their rights to free speech and a free press under the US Constitution's First Amendment.
Deep Dive
ALSO READ | Why did CNN, MS NOW and Politico sue the Trump administration? White House ban explained
White House press pool
CNN is among the five major news organisations, along with ABC, CBS, Fox News, and NBC, that are included in the White House TV pool. They take turns organising coverage and share the footage with outlets across the country, and the chair position is rotated quarterly.
Bryan Boughton, who runs the Fox News Washington bureau and is the current TV pool chair, told White House pool subscribers in an email on Monday morning, "This is to advise that, effective today (Monday), the TV pool will not be covering events designated as pool coverage of the President."
He also clarified that there will be "no replacement pool put in place," Reuters reported.
CNN, which is now in a conflict with the Trump administration, was scheduled to cover the US President's trip to New York for the UNGA on Monday, but couldn't provide a pool feed.
ALSO READ | CNN, MS NOW, Politico barred: The White House TV pool and its standoff with Trump
The suspension of the presidential pool coverage also effectively removes any chance of video from several upcoming White House events, especially as Trump is scheduled to meet many world leaders, including Chinese President Xi Jinping, on the sidelines of the UNGA.
Other pool outlets, that aren't TV networks, will reportedly continue to accompany Trump. Therefore, there will be coverage of his UN trip, just not a video feed, Axios reported.
Networks skip helipad launch
President Trump was inaudible at the launch of a new helipad on the White House South Lawn on Monday after TV networks suspended their shared television pool coverage of the Republican leader's events -- a move that followed Trump's decision to bar CNN, Politico and MS NOW.
Trump was seen cutting a ribbon on the walkway leading to the new helipad, but his words were barely audible as the sound of a helicopter drowned him out.
The New York Times also said it would distribute the photographs taken as part of the White House still-photography pool in solidarity with the networks affected by Trump.
Lawsuit against Trump
The lawsuit by CNN, MS NOW and Politico against Donald Trump and other members of his administration sought a temporary stay order to block Trump's action in federal court in Washington DC. The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday.
"This ban could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment nor a more blatant violation of our most fundamental constitutional principles," the lawsuit said.
The media outlets wrote in a joint statement, "Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public's right to independent journalism free from government interference."
The outlets affirmed that the government does not hold the deciding powers over what the press reports or publishes.
‘Not assault on Free Press, but on Fake News’: Trump
Trump announced the ban on the three media networks on Friday in a post on Truth Social. He had said that those news outlets "shouldn't be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they are covering the President of the United States."
Without providing any evidence for his claims, Trump on Monday said the White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, which he said he cherishes. "It is instituting an assault on the FAKE NEWS. It is a threat to our National Security, and must be stopped, NOW!" he added.
Days after the ban on some of the pool TV outlets, the White House also launched a "Trump TV" stream on Monday evening.
Why Trump banned the TV outlets?
Natalie Harp, a close aide of Trump, showed the President clips and graphics of recent news coverage, which contributed to his decision to ban the three media organisations, Reuters reported, citing a person familiar with the matter.
The person reportedly also said that Trump had been "very unhappy" with coverage of the midterm elections, adding that his frustration grew after last week, when the US Supreme Court ruled to block his attempt to limit mail-in voting.
ALSO READ | White House correspondents body slams Trump's ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico
In response to Reuters' questions about the lawsuit against Trump, Harp's role and the President's views on election coverage, the White House said, "The Fake News has no place demanding a spot in the President's Oval Office."
"They're completely capable of reporting from directly outside," it added.
This is not Trump's first battle with the press. The US President has been a long-standing critic of the press and its coverage.
Last year, he banned the Associated Press from the pool of reporters that covers his movements after the news agency did not adopt his preferred name for the Gulf of Mexico. The AP sued him over the ban.
Additionally, the Trump administration restricted access for several journalists to the Pentagon.
During his first term in office, Trump sought to revoke the credentials of then-CNN correspondent Jim Acosta and Playboy correspondent Brian Karem. Federal judges, however, ordered that their White House press passes be restored.
