Reporters Committee's Bruce Brown calls the ban "flatly unconstitutional" and "textbook viewpoint discrimination"
Legal organization for journalists, in a statement by president Bruce D. Brown on its website
“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.”
Source and context
Official statement
About this source
The organization's own statement, read in full on rcfp.org.
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
Case context: Should President Trump bar CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House over their coverage?
The label describes this statement’s response within the context above.
Why this label?
The case's fixed reference point is President Trump's announcement on September 18, 2026 that CNN, MS NOW and Politico are banned from the White House because of their coverage, as reaffirmed in the Oval Office that afternoon. 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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Should President Trump bar CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House over their coverage?
Explore the case context, sources and public responses.
More from this case
Read the full caseMS NOW
“MS NOW intends to take any and all steps necessary to defend our First Amendment rights and the essential role of independent journalism in our democracy.”Read statement
The White House
“The White House declined to comment further Saturday, referring NBC News to Trump’s previous comments.”Read statement
Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression
“When the White House opens its doors to the press, it must comply with the First Amendment. The president is as free as any other person to criticize media coverage. But he can’t ban outlets from the White House just because he doesn’t like their reporting or commentary.”Read statement