Reporters Committee's Bruce Brown calls the ban "flatly unconstitutional" and "textbook viewpoint discrimination"
Reporters Committee for Freedom of the PressLegal organization for journalists, in a statement by president Bruce D. Brown on its website
In a statement on the Reporters Committee's website, president Bruce D. Brown said a ban like this would be flatly unconstitutional, that once the White House invites in some journalists it cannot ban others because it does not like their reporting, and that it is textbook viewpoint discrimination that courts would quickly strike down if challenged.
“A ban like this would be flatly unconstitutional. The First Amendment is clear that once the White House invites in some journalists, it can’t ban others because it doesn’t like their reporting. This is textbook viewpoint discrimination and will be quickly struck down by the courts if challenged.”
Official statement
Other statements by Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press in this case
Where this statement fits
Should President Trump bar CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House over their coverage?
On Friday, September 18, 2026, President Donald Trump posted on Truth Social that, "effective immediately, I am banning" CNN, MS NOW and Politico "from the White House as a result of their constant 'reporting' FAKE NEWS!" About an hour later, in the Oval Office, he said no particular story prompted the decision, that he does not want the outlets "in my office," and that "somebody has a right to keep them away" if outlets write false stories. The three outlets and press-freedom groups oppose the exclusion, citing constitutional protection for the press, and the White House Correspondents' Association said it "stands in defense of our colleagues at CNN, MSNOW, and POLITICO." On Saturday, September 19, MS NOW, CNN and Politico said their White House reporters were refused entry and had press passes confiscated; the White House referred questions to Trump's earlier remarks. The dispute is over whether President Trump should exclude named news organizations from White House access over what they report.
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
The organization's own statement on rcfp.org.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Before the quotation
The organization posted the statement on September 18 and said the administration was already on the defensive in a wide range of court battles with news media.
After the quotation
The statement continued that the announcement "makes even plainer" that the administration will come after outlets it does not like, pointing to the FCC and the Pentagon press expulsions.
How this statement is classified
The label describes this statement's response within the context above.
Why this label?
The Reporters Committee rejects the exclusion as unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination. The closest competing label is “Mixed or conditional”, because the statement says a ban would be struck down "if challenged". That loses because the condition is about a lawsuit being filed, not a qualification of its position, which is unqualified rejection.
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Schiff says White House press exclusions also harm the public
“When a reporter is denied access to the White House, it isn't just that news organization that suffers. The American people rely on a free press to know what their government is up to, and whether it is acting wisely and lawfully.”Read statement
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- Reporters Committee's Bruce Brown calls the ban "flatly unconstitutional" and "textbook viewpoint discrimination"
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The Dispute Index. "Reporters Committee's Bruce Brown calls the ban "flatly unconstitutional" and "textbook viewpoint discrimination"". First published: 2026-09-19. Last updated: 2026-09-22. https://disputeindex.com/events/1147-in-a-statement-on-the-reporters-committee-s