Broadcast and Cable News Outlets Added to Letters in Support of the Associated Press

Donald Trump‘s administration has given the Associated Press the cold shoulder treatment in recent weeks. Reporters from the news organization have been barred from attending White House events and boarding Air Force 1 due to the AP refusing to recognize the administration’s depiction of the body of water bordering the southern states as the “Gulf of America.” 

Broadcast and cable news outlets, including ABC News, NBC News, CBS News, CNN, Fox News, and Newsmax, are among nearly 40 news organizations that have signed a confidential letter from the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) in support of the AP.

According to Status’ Oliver Darcy, the letter called for the White House to lift its ban on the AP, saying, “The First Amendment prohibits the government from asserting control over how news organizations make editorial decisions. Any attempt to punish journalists for those decisions is a serious breach of this Constitutional protection.”

Oliver Darcy reported last night on a letter to the White House that the @whca is overseeing that includes at least 40 news organizations as signers. https://t.co/guImKcGlfr pic.twitter.com/6mW6RURcnF

— Jeremy Barr (@jeremymbarr) February 20, 2025

In a statement to The New York Times’ Katie Robertson showing why it’s supporting the AP, Newsmax said, “We fear a future administration may not like something Newsmax writes and seeks to ban us.”

A statement from Newsmax on the Trump administration’s barring of The Associated Press. Newsmax was one of dozens of media orgs that signed a letter to the White House in support of The A.P. pic.twitter.com/0BzKaKjQ7O

— Katie Robertson (@katie_robertson) February 20, 2025

In addition to the letter from the WHCA, these news outlets also added their names to a letter from the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press asking for the restoration of the AP’s pool participation, ensuring that access to future events shall not be hindered because of editorial disagreements.

“Conditioning pool access to White House events on the editorial decisions of any news organization violates First Amendment principles,” the letter said. “All news organizations covering the White House are negatively affected when one peer outlet is singled out in a manner that crosses a constitutional line. As a group, we ask you to restore AP’s pool participation and ensure that going forward, access to White House events is not predicated on improper considerations or disagreement with editorial choices.”

Letter from @rcfp urging the White House to restore the AP’s access, citing the First Amendmemt. 30+ news organizations signed on in support pic.twitter.com/hngsvQGQfx

— Liam Scott (@liamjscott) February 20, 2025

Coming together to support a competitor’s access to a particular administration is not new for media outlets. Back in 2009, the broadcast and cable news outlets stood in support of Fox News after Barack Obama’s administration wanted to keep the news network out of the press pool when it offered an interview with Kenneth Feinberg of the Treasury Department.

In 2018, journalists and the WHCA came to CNN’s defense after the first Trump administration banned former White House reporter and anchor Jim Acosta after a contentious press briefing. Acosta received an indefinite ban, which barred him from setting foot on the White House grounds.

Former president of the WHCA, Oliver Knox, released a statement at that time saying, “Revoking access to the White House complex is a reaction out of line to the purported offense and is unacceptable.”

CNN immediately sued the White House, and Acosta’s access to the complex was soon restored.