Donald Trump’s appearance at the United Nations General Assembly in New York will not receive live coverage from the major US television networks on Monday, as broadcasters unite in protest over the White House ban targeting CNN and MS NOW.
Fox News, CNN, ABC, CBS and NBC—the outlets that make up the television news pool—will not send camera crews or reporters to cover the president after deciding to withdraw from Monday’s pool assignment.
As a result, Trump’s journey to New York for the UN General Assembly is expected to go without coverage from the country’s largest broadcast networks.
Conservative broadcaster Real America’s Voice, however, plans to stream the event from the United Nations. Local television operator Hearst is also expected to cover Trump’s events at the White House.
Bryan Boughton, Fox News’ Washington bureau chief, confirmed the decision in an email sent to staff on Monday morning.
“This is to advise that, effective today, the TV pool will not be covering events designated as pool coverage of the President,” Boughton wrote.
“This follows the White House’s position preventing CNN from fulfilling its assigned pool duties. There will be no replacement pool put in place.”
The broadcasters have not said when they will resume their shared coverage of the president.
Fox News, CNN, ABC, CBS and NBC—the networks forming the TV pool—are protesting the White House decision by withholding camera crews and reporters from Monday’s presidential coverage
Television broadcast tents outside the White House stood empty Monday after Trump barred several outlets from the presidential residence
CNN had been scheduled to provide the television pool crew on Monday, but that arrangement changed after Trump barred CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House.
The White House’s official daily schedule, circulated Sunday, confirmed that no television pool would operate Monday, effectively removing CNN’s scheduled turn.
Trump has also threatened possible action against The New York Times and The Washington Post.
The president banned the outlets on Friday, labeling them “fake news” while attacking their critical reporting on his administration.
Vice President JD Vance defended the move on Monday, saying it was a matter of “basic fairness.”
“They can still report. They still have access to free speech. They’re just not going to get an office in the White House anymore,” Vance said.
Reporters from the barred organizations who arrived at the White House to work over the weekend saw some of their press credentials revoked.
The major television networks responded by rallying behind the affected outlets and issuing a sharply worded statement condemning the president’s decision.
CNN Senior White House Reporter Betsy Klein, right, leaves the White House after her press credential was revoked Saturday following Trump’s ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico
MS NOW White House Correspondent Vaughn Hillyard reports from a street corner outside the White House on Monday after the network was barred from the grounds
‘The public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government,’ they said in a statement. ‘No administration should restrict a news organization because it objects to its reporting.’
When pressed for comment, the White House responded with a social media post from the president published earlier on Monday morning.
‘The White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, something which I cherish,’ Trump wrote. ‘It is instituting an assault on the fake news, something that has grown like Cancer in our beloved United States of America.’
‘It is corrupt, purposeful, pervasive, fully coordinated, and totally out of control. It is a threat to our National Security, and must be stopped, now!’
While CNN was banned from the White House, its reporters and crew still covered Secretary of State Marco Rubio as he opened the New York Stock Exchange on Monday, showing that the White House ban does not extend to other departments.
The three media outlets Trump targeted, CNN, MS NOW and Politico, announced they would combat the administration in court over the ban.
‘This morning, we notified the government that we are filing a lawsuit today to protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes,’ they said in a statement released on Monday.
‘Without notice or process, the White House revoked our journalists’ credentials because it objected to our reporting,’ the statement continued.
‘Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public’s right to independent journalism free from government interference.’
The White House also published a cryptic social media post on Monday with a TV showing static with the caption: ‘Something’s coming. Stay tuned.’
