The White House has blocked CNN and MS NOW from covering Chinese President Xi Jinping’s arrival at the White House for a state dinner with Donald Trump, according to the networks.
CNN and MS NOW both said their reporters were denied access to cover Xi’s arrival Thursday night at the North Portico of the White House, despite a federal judge temporarily reversing Trump’s ban on the outlets covering such events.
A reporter and producer with CNN were stopped by a press wrangler when they tried to enter the greeting ceremony between Trump and first lady Melania and Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, the network reported.
The White House reportedly told CNN shortly before the event that it could cover Xi’s arrival but only with a photojournalist and audio technician, despite other networks being allowed to bring reporters and producers.
MS NOW White House reporter Laura Barrón-López said she was also stopped by a press wrangler when trying to cover Xi’s arrival.
“I was told, ‘I’m sorry, I can’t let you in,’” Barrón-López told MS NOW host Symone Sanders Townsend, recalling the incident.
“The big question is — is this going to continue? Are we not going to be credentialed into these daily events?” Barrón-López asked.
The Independent has reached out to the White House for comment.
The news of the reporters being barred from covering White House events came hours after Trump slammed CNN and MS NOW for skipping Xi’s arrival at the White House Thursday morning to attend a press conference and an Oval Office meeting.
CNN and MS NOW “refused to cover one of the Biggest and Most Beautiful Events to take place in many years, the arrival at the White House of the Highly Respected President of China, Xi Jinping, and his beautiful wife, Madam Peng,” Trump raged on Truth Social Thursday afternoon.
The president suggested that the outlets didn’t cover Xi’s arrival Thursday morning because of their perceived vendetta against him.
“The event was magnificent — Actually made for Television but, because they’re Fake News, and because they knew how good it would be, they didn’t want credit to be given to ‘TRUMP,’ they refused to be there. That’s why they have such poor Ratings,” he wrote.
A rotating press pool usually covers White House events for major TV networks, but the pool has abstained from filming in solidarity with the outlets Trump banned.
Trump prohibited CNN, MS NOW and Politico from covering events at the White House just days before because of their unfavorable coverage.
“Media Outlets shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America,” the president wrote last Friday.
The three outlets subsequently filed a lawsuit to regain access to the White House, arguing the ban violated their First Amendment rights. In an early morning ruling Thursday, U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly ordered the Trump administration to temporarily reinstate the outlets’ press badges.
Despite Kelly’s order, reporters from the three outlets were denied entry Thursday morning. A White House official later told the court that the press office started “reinstating” press badges that morning.
By Thursday afternoon, the outlets’ reporters regained access to the White House. But after reporters from CNN and MS NOW were blocked from covering Xi’s White House arrival Thursday night, it’s unclear whether their access will continue to be challenged and how that will play out in court.
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