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The Associated Press hit back at President Donald Trump on Tuesday after being kicked from the White House press pool.
The Trump administration decided to remove the press pool position for newswires altogether this week after they were ordered by a judge to restore AP’s access to the pool rotation, which had been restricted since February.
Reacting to the news on Tuesday evening, AP told CNN chief media analyst Brian Stelter, “We are deeply disappointed that the administration has chosen to restrict the access of all wire services, whose fast and accurate White House coverage informs billions of people every single day, rather than reinstate The AP to the wire pool.”
“The wire services represent thousands of news organizations across the U.S. and the world over,” the news organization continued. “Our coverage is used by local newspapers and television stations in all 50 states to inform their communities. The administration’s actions continue to disregard the fundamental American freedom to speak without government control or retaliation. This is a grave disservice to the American people.”
Reuters also criticized the Trump administration’s decision, telling CNN, “It is essential to democracy that the public have access to independent, impartial and accurate news about their government. Any steps by the U.S. government to limit access to the President threatens that principle, both for the public and the world’s media.”
While the official spot in the press pool for newswires has been removed, AP will still be eligible for the two rotating print news spots. CNN reported, however, that despite their eligibility, “In practice this means The AP, Reuters and Bloomberg will have markedly less access than they did in January, when all three were in the pool every day.”
In February, the White House accused AP of “weaponizing language,” citing the organization’s decision to refer to the “Gulf of Mexico” instead of the “Gulf of America,” among other concerns.
