Fox News joined some of the largest names in left-leaning corporate media on Monday in a coordinated protest against President Donald Trump’s decision to remove three news organizations from the White House. Fox News Media, ABC News, CBS News, CNN, and NBC News agreed to suspend their shared television pool coverage of the president. The move followed the administration’s decision to bar CNN, MS NOW, and Politico over reporting Trump described as deliberately negative and “fake news.” Fox wasn’t included in the ban but chose to stand with the three outlets targeted by the administration.
The White House television pool is a rotating arrangement through which the five networks take turns covering presidential events and distributing their footage to other news organizations. The networks split the cost of the operation, allowing outlets around the country and overseas to receive video without sending their own crews everywhere the president travels. CNN had been scheduled to provide the pooled coverage on Monday as Trump traveled to the United Nations General Assembly. That assignment was thrown into question when the White House revoked CNN’s access.
Rather than replace CNN with another participating network, all five pool members agreed to suspend the shared operation. The suspension took effect immediately, temporarily cutting off the usual stream of pooled footage from Trump’s public appearances. Individual organizations that retain White House access may still cover the president using their own personnel and equipment. The networks didn’t announce how long the suspension would remain in place or what conditions would cause them to resume the rotating pool.
As Fox 10 reported, the five networks issued a joint statement defending their decision. “The public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government,” the statement said. The networks argued that an administration shouldn’t restrict an organization simply because it objects to that organization’s reporting. Fox News Media signed onto the statement alongside ABC, CBS, CNN, and NBC.
Trump has accused CNN, MS NOW, and Politico of producing false and purposefully hostile coverage of his administration. He defended the decision on Truth Social, rejecting the claim that the White House was launching a broader attack against freedom of the press. Trump said his administration was targeting what he called “an assault on the FAKE NEWS.” He described that coverage as corrupt, coordinated, pervasive, and dangerous to the country.
The president also argued that news organizations granted access to the White House have an obligation to report fairly. His statement said the administration’s action was directed at outlets that repeatedly publish negative stories attributed to unnamed sources. Trump characterized those practices as a national-security threat and called for them to be stopped. His defense drew a sharp line between the free press as an institution and specific companies he maintains have abused their access.
Fox has a large conservative audience and has generally received more favorable treatment from Trump than its competitors. By suspending its pool participation, Fox placed itself on the same side as outlets that have spent years clashing with the president. The decision also prevented the remaining networks from simply continuing their normal rotation without CNN.
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CNN, MS NOW, and Politico have since sued the Trump administration over the loss of their White House access. The three organizations allege that the administration revoked their journalists’ credentials because it objected to their reporting. They contend that selectively excluding them violates their First Amendment rights and allows the government to decide which news organizations may directly cover the president. The three outlets called the White House action “a blatant violation” of the First Amendment.