The White House announced that the president’s appearances would now be streamed live via the administration’s own app, rebranded as “Trump TV.” The channel is intended to broadcast what officials call the administration’s “biggest moments,” a model the statement likened to state‑run broadcasters in countries such as China and North Korea.
The decision follows a joint statement from the five major broadcast networks – ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox News and CNN – in which they said no administration should restrict a news organization because it dislikes its reporting. The networks also announced they would no longer participate in the daily “pool,” a rotating group that traditionally provides footage of the president’s public events to all broadcasters.
Fox News Washington bureau chief Bryan Boughton, who chairs the pool, told subscribers that there would be no replacement pool. The move leaves uncertainty over television coverage of Trump’s upcoming trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly and his scheduled meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
The Associated Press said it will cover the UN appearance with its own journalists, providing live video, images and reporting independent of the traditional pool. A right‑wing outlet, Real America’s Voice, was appointed to a second pool position on Monday, but it does not share footage with other networks.
In response to the ban, CNN, Politico and MS NOW filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia, naming President Trump, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, communications director Steven Cheung and Secret Service director Sean Curran as defendants. Their attorneys argue the ban is a direct assault on the First Amendment and was implemented without notice or an opportunity for the outlets to be heard.
According to a Wall Street Journal report, the ban was triggered after Trump’s aide Natalie Harp showed him a clip of MS NOW anchors criticizing the administration. Trump later defended the action on Truth Social, calling “fake news” a cancer that has grown “fully coordinated and totally out of control.” Vice President JD Vance echoed the president’s stance, claiming 92 percent of the stories from the barred outlets were negative and accusing them of “far‑left propaganda.”
The ban has also resulted in the deactivation of press passes for journalists from the three outlets. When they attempted to enter the White House grounds on Saturday, Secret Service agents confiscated their credentials, forcing the reporters to broadcast from nearby streets rather than from the usual camera tents.
Technical glitches have already marred the new Trump TV service. During a live‑streamed ribbon‑cutting ceremony for a new White House helipad, the audio feed failed, rendering the president’s remarks largely inaudible. The White House later said building‑access rules have always applied to “our side” rather than to every outlet equally.