About a week ago we told you that a federal judge had ordered the Associated Press's access to White House events to be restored, citing the First Amendment (we looked but couldn't find "AP has a right to cover White House events" in the 1A).
Nevertheless, earlier this month the AP celebrated having their access reinstated:
The Associated Press wins reinstatement to White House events after judge rules government can’t bar its journalists, citing the 1st Amendment. https://t.co/cfT3erOua9
— The Associated Press (@AP) April 8, 2025
That sparked a celebration amongst the "journalism" crowd because it was a victory over the Trump administration.
The AP (and others) might have popped the cork on the Champagne a bit too soon, because the Trump press office has now pulled the plug on ALL wire services in the White House:
Instead of restoring access to The Associated Press newswire, as required by a federal judge, the Trump administration is removing the wire position in the daily press corps rotation altogether.
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) April 16, 2025
D'OH!
The change appears designed to withstand legal scrutiny while still disadvantaging The AP, which was singled out by President Trump earlier this year for still using the name Gulf of Mexico. Full story with @Sam_Waldenberg here: https://t.co/BttJnmjcqx
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) April 16, 2025
"The change appears designed to withstand legal scrutiny." What's the AP style guide say about the usage of "FAFO"?
Also here's a reminder that the AP helped spread the propaganda about "cheap fakes" in order to help the Biden White House call "misinformation" on claims about Biden's condition:
The clip was the first of at least three out-of-context or trimmed videos shared widely over less than two weeks in June to fuel a narrative that Biden is mentally and physically unfit for office.
It’s long been standard practice in politics to spin real moments to make an opponent look bad. Yet the recent spate of misleading videos — which amassed millions of views and were picked up by right-leaning outlets around the world — shows how the reach of social media and real concerns about Biden's age have made the tactic especially powerful in 2024.
That story came out just days before the Biden/Trump debate, and you know how that worked out. But we're now seeing this kind of spin on the Trump White House ending access for wire services:
Ultimately the impacts will be felt by newswire customers, including local news outlets that rely on The AP for just-the-facts coverage because they don’t have White House correspondents of their own.
— Brian Stelter (@brianstelter) April 16, 2025
"Just the facts." Uh huh.
The Associated Press newswire trying to get access from the Trump Administration https://t.co/6yFev6rlAe pic.twitter.com/4I9QsHOFfU
— Extremely Careless (@Shanghaibeast) April 16, 2025
They tried.
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