CNN Left Off Air Force One for Trump’s Tennessee Trip as White House Tightens Media Access
The White House has removed CNN from the Air Force One press contingent for President Trump’s Saturday trip to Knoxville, Tennessee, replacing the network with Real America’s Voice News. The change was revealed in White House guidance issued ahead of the president’s trip. Trump is scheduled to attend the University of Tennessee football game against the University of Texas.
CNN had been scheduled to travel aboard Air Force One as part of the rotating television press pool. Major television networks traditionally rotate responsibility for covering the president in situations where space is limited, with the designated outlet providing video and reporting to other organizations.
The decision comes amid an escalating dispute between the Trump administration and several major news organizations. CNN, MS NOW and Politico were barred from the White House grounds last week after President Trump accused the outlets of repeatedly producing false and unfair coverage of his administration.
The three organizations challenged the restrictions in federal court. U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly temporarily blocked the White House from enforcing the restrictions on their access to the White House grounds, allowing their journalists to return to the executive complex on Thursday.
The judge’s temporary order, however, specifically dealt with access to the White House grounds and did not directly address participation in the presidential press pool or access aboard Air Force One. That distinction has now become a major part of the continuing dispute between the administration and the affected news organizations.
CNN briefly resumed its role in the television pool on Friday. The network was assigned to cover President Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping during their appearance at the National Archives, and the White House approved credentials for CNN personnel covering the event.
That changed when guidance was released for Trump’s Tennessee trip. Instead of CNN filling the television pool position aboard Air Force One, Real America’s Voice News was selected. Real America’s Voice is not one of the traditional members of the network television pool.
The television pool has historically included major broadcast organizations that rotate responsibility for providing footage to the broader press corps. When CNN was initially barred from the White House, the other participating television organizations declined to continue normal pool operations while the dispute remained unresolved.
The latest decision shows that the fight over media access is continuing despite the temporary court order restoring access to the White House grounds. The affected news organizations maintain that the restrictions violate their First Amendment rights, while the administration has asserted greater authority over which journalists receive access to limited and highly restricted presidential spaces.
For Saturday’s trip, CNN will therefore not occupy its previously scheduled position aboard Air Force One as President Trump travels to Knoxville. Real America’s Voice will take its place as the president heads to Tennessee for the highly anticipated matchup between the Volunteers and Longhorns.