The White House Bars CNN
The White House dropped CNN from Air Force One for President Trump’s trip to Tennessee this Saturday. The rotating pool schedule no longer includes the network due to this action. The schedule was released Friday evening for the college football game. On Saturday, CNN stated it was prohibited from boarding Air Force One. The network claimed this was part of its duties covering the president.
CNN stated that no outlet was listed as replacing them. They said this meant there would be no television pool coverage of the trip. This claim about limited coverage was proven false by Real America’s Voice. The game features the University of Texas against the University of Tennessee. The Tennessean calls it “the Tennessee Volunteers’ biggest game of the year.”
RAV Steps In With Full Coverage
Real America’s Voice (RAV) quickly corrected the record on this trip. They confirmed they were tapped to replace CNN for the pool coverage. RAV stated that a “publicly available pool feed for ANY network that chooses to cover the President” exists, according to RedState. They posted a look back at the day on the road with President Trump. The post showed Air Force One and a packed stadium.
Fredricka Whitfield of CNN asserted that “No outlet has been tapped to replace CNN, which means limited coverage of his trip”. RAV’s response showed they were there for the whole event. The group went to Tennessee for the game alongside the presidential pool. This direct feed contradicted the earlier report from CNN about limited access.
Media Analysts Weigh In on the Fight
According to reports, Trump told Whitfield he was attempting to control news coverage. Stelter stated the President is engaging in a fight with those reporting unpleasant truths about his administration. Stelter focused on how CNN was dealing with the situation. He suggested this could happen to any media outlet in the future.
This trip follows a series of access changes for the White House press pool. President Trump removed Politico, CNN, and MS NOW on September 18. He called their reporting “FAKE NEWS” in a Truth Social post. A federal judge ordered the White House to restore their access early Thursday. Regular coverage resumed on Friday with a visit to the National Archives. Trump later told Kaitlan Collins that CNN “shouldn’t be covering” him at a UN event. The judge’s order and the new pool assignment show the ongoing tension between the White House and certain news outlets.
