CNN Excluded from Trump’s Air Force One Press Pool

CNN has been excluded from the press pool seat on Air Force One for President Donald Trump’s upcoming trip to Knoxville, Tennessee, where he is scheduled to attend a college football game. White House guidance assigned the spot to Real America’s Voice News, a conservative outlet that is not one of the five major broadcast organizations in the rotating video pool. The article describes the decision as the latest restriction on media access by the Trump administration. The exclusion follows Trump’s announcement the previous week that CNN, MS NOW and Politico were barred from White House grounds. Fox, ABC, CBS and NBC responded by declining to take part in the pool until access was restored. The three excluded outlets sued, arguing that the White House had violated their First Amendment rights and warning that government interference could threaten press freedom and independent journalism. US District Judge Timothy Kelly temporarily blocked the White House grounds ban. He said the government had not supplied factual support for its claim that the restrictions were needed to protect national security, noting that officials had provided no declarations or other evidence explaining how the outlets’ reporting had caused such harm. However, Kelly’s ruling concerned White House press passes and did not specifically address pool assignments or access to Air Force One. The outlets’ attorney, Theodore Boutrous Jr, said the plaintiffs believe the ruling also applies to pool access. The article does not report a definitive ruling on that question. It notes that the Air Force One seat traditionally belongs to a member of the US network video pool, a group that does not include Real America’s Voice News.

CNN said its journalists were prevented from boarding Air Force One for President Donald Trump’s planned trip to Knoxville, Tennessee, on Saturday, where he was expected to attend a college football game. CNN had been assigned to represent the television press pool for the weekend. In that role, it would cover the president and share video and information with the other four major networks in the pool. According to the Associated Press, CNN was replaced by Real America’s Voice News, a conservative network. The decision is the latest dispute between the Trump administration and news organizations the president considers unfavorable in their coverage. Earlier in the week, Trump barred CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House, accusing them of reporting “fiction and lies.” Major television networks, including DW, suspended their pooled coverage of the president in solidarity with the outlets. The outlets challenged the White House ban in court. On Thursday, a federal judge temporarily struck it down. However, the ruling addressed reporters’ “hard passes” for access to White House grounds and did not directly decide who could take part in press-pool duties. The article therefore distinguishes the court’s temporary action on access to the White House from the separate question of CNN’s assignment to cover Trump’s trip aboard Air Force One.

US television networks resumed White House coverage on Sept 25 during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s visit, after the administration restored access to CNN, MS NOW and Politico. A federal judge had ordered access reinstated, finding the outlets were likely to succeed in arguing that the ban was unconstitutional. The main First Amendment case remains unresolved, and the outlets have until Sept 28 to ask the judge to maintain their access while litigation continues. The networks’ return allowed the White House press pool to provide video of Xi’s arrival and the leaders’ visit to the National Archives. Pool coverage had been absent during the first two days of Xi’s visit after other networks declined to set up cameras in solidarity with the excluded outlets. The Washington Post also reported that CNN was subsequently blocked from travelling with President Donald Trump on Air Force One, though Reuters said it could not immediately obtain comment from the White House or CNN. The dispute forms part of Trump’s broader campaign against news organisations since he returned to office in 2025, including restricting access, attacking journalists, suing outlets and urging the Federal Communications Commission to revoke broadcast licences. During the resumed coverage, Trump declined to answer reporters’ questions on China, Iran, the media ban and a taxpayer-funded advertisement promoting his presidency, but later praised reporters for what he called “fair coverage.” CNN, MS NOW and Politico argue that the ban violated constitutional protections for free speech and a free press, as well as due-process rights. Press-freedom groups and news organisations, including Reuters, have supported their case. The article also notes concerns about potential editorial influence at CBS News amid Paramount Skydance’s proposed merger involving CNN’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery. Paramount Skydance chief executive David Ellison attended the Trump-Xi state dinner and has pledged to establish an editorial-independence board for CBS and CNN.