In President Donald Trump‘s latest move to restrict certain news outlets’ access from covering him, CNN was not permitted to join the president on Air Force One on Saturday, Sept. 26 as he traveled to a football game at the University of Tennessee.
“I want real news. I love an open, free press,” Trump said on Saturday morning to reporters when asked about the bar. “What I don’t like is the fake press, where a group like CNN, with few people watching, or MSDNC,” the name that he calls MSNOW, formerly MSNBC.
On Friday night, CNN anchor Anderson Cooper announced the news on his show. CNN was slotted to cover Trump on Saturday on behalf of the television pool – where ABC, CBS, CNN, NBC and FOX take turns covering Trump and sharing camera feeds with the other networks. CNN White House Correspondent Alayna Treene explained to Cooper that White House’s guidance for the next day was released and CNN was not included on the list of outlets traveling with Trump.
“The White House is barring CNN from flying on Air Force One on Saturday as part of the news outlet’s duties covering the president on behalf of major television networks,” CNN Chief White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins said in a post on X.
This comes amid a legal dispute after the president attempted to block three news outlets – CNN, MSNOW and Politico – from the White House. Here’s the timeline:
Trump spent his morning doubling down on his ban, saying in a Truth Social post that “FAKE NEWS SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED IN THE WHITE HOUSE!!! IT HAS GONE ON FAR TOO LONG, AT A TREMENDOUS COST TO OUR COUNTRY.”
“Why should perpetrators of FAKE NEWS, like CNN and MSDNC, be allowed access to a very sacred place, the White House? Despite my big Election Win, almost 100% of “TRUMP” coverage is negative, and has been for years,” Trump said in a second Sept. 26 post.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Trump blocks CNN from traveling on Air Force One
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