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** OPINION
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** Trump’s White House continues chipping away at press freedoms
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a press briefing at the White House on Tuesday. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

In a stunning move that should trouble all Americans and anyone who truly believes in the pillars of democracy, the Trump administration announced that it, and not the White House Correspondents’ Association, will choose the outlets that will make up the press pools covering the president during the news moments where the full press corps cannot be accommodated.

This relates to press activities in the Oval Office, aboard Air Force One and other meetings and events where the president conducts official business. These press pools typically include around a dozen members from broadcast, print and radio outlets.

In other words, the Trump administration is now taking more control of who covers the White House.

Mediaite called ([link removed]) the announcement a “bombshell.”

For years, the WHCA has selected who was a part of the press pool. But now the Trump administration will be in charge — doing something no previous administration has ever done.

Politico’s Eugene Daniels, the president of the WHCA, wrote in a statement ([link removed]) , “This move tears at the independence of a free press in the United States. It suggests the government will choose the journalists who cover the president. In a free country, leaders must not be able to choose their own press corps.”

So what, exactly, does this new policy look like?

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt posted a video of her announcement on X and tweeted ([link removed]) , “A group of DC-based journalists, the White House Correspondents' Association, has long dictated which journalists get to ask questions of the President of the United States. Not anymore. Today, I was proud to announce that we are giving the power back to the people. Moving forward, the ‘White House Press Pool,’ will be determined by the White House Press Team. Legacy outlets who have participated in the press pool for decades will still be allowed to join — but we will also be offering the privilege to well-deserving outlets who have never been allowed to share in this awesome responsibility.”

Leavitt said, “It’s beyond time that the White House press operation reflects the media habits of the American people in 2025, not 1925.”

In her announcement to a stunned press corps, Leavitt tried to reassure traditional media outlets, saying “fear not” because “legacy” outlets would still be a part of the rotation. But there are fears the Trump administration will eventually weed out news organizations it doesn’t like.

It’s not a stretch to imagine such a thing. It’s already happening. The administration has banned The Associated Press from certain media events simply because it doesn’t like the AP calling the body of water between Florida and Mexico the “Gulf of Mexico” instead of the “Gulf of America.”

Peter Baker, chief White House correspondent for The New York Times, tweeted ([link removed]) , “Having served as a Moscow correspondent in the early days of Putin’s reign, this reminds me of how the Kremlin took over its own press pool and made sure that only compliant journalists were given access.”

Baker also wrote ([link removed]) , “The message is clear. Given that the White House has already kicked one news organization out of the pool because of coverage it does not like, it is making certain everyone else knows that the rest of us can be barred too if the president does not like our questions or stories.”

Leavitt tried to spin the move to say this will allow space for other nontraditional media types such as podcasters, streaming services and influencers. The White House had already created a seat in the press room for those kinds of people.

“All journalists, outlets and voices deserve a seat at this highly coveted table,” Leavitt said.

Leavitt added, “By deciding which outlets make up the limited press pool on a day-to-day basis, the White House will be restoring power back to the American people.”

What Leavitt seems to forget is that traditional news organizations such as the AP, The New York Times, The Washington Post, CNN, the major networks and so forth do represent the American people with their dogged reporting. Moving aside those kinds of news organizations in favor of those who simply act as Donald Trump sycophants and supporters is a dangerous precedent. Even worse is keeping away media outlets who might have the temerity to ask tough but fair questions that Trump doesn’t want to answer.

Jacqui Heinrich, a senior White House correspondent at Fox News, tweeted ([link removed]) , “This move does not give the power back to the people — it gives power to the White House. The WHCA is democratically elected by the full-time White House press corps. WHCA has determined pools for decades because only representatives FROM our outlets can determine resources all those outlets have — such as staffing — in order to get the President's message out to the largest possible audience, no matter the day or hour.”

So, who is in and who is out?

Politico’s Eli Stokols wrote ([link removed]) , “Pressed for more detail about the changes, an administration official indicated that the traditional newswire services — AP, Bloomberg and Reuters — will no longer have a permanent spot in every pool. Going forward, the official said, Bloomberg and Reuters would alternate in a single pool slot for the wire services (AP will remain barred over the organization’s refusal to refer to the ‘Gulf of America’). That will open up two additional slots in the pool for the White House to fill as aides choose.”

Stokols added, “The decision continues the administration’s efforts to weaken the traditional White House press corps by populating the beat with individuals who represent Trump-friendly outlets or are considered conservative influencers on social media.”

One veteran White House correspondent granted anonymity told Stokols, “They have tried to avoid confrontation with this administration, but that was never going to work. If we don’t figure out a way to stand up to this, we’re cooked.”

Bruce D. Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, said in a statement, “The White House press pool exists to serve the public, not the presidency.”

Meanwhile, one cannot help but notice the timing between the White House’s latest move and the ongoing court battle with the AP, which is trying to have its ban lifted. In its court filing, the AP mentioned its role in the press pool more than 50 times.

One unnamed White House adviser told Axios’ Marc Caputo, Erin Doherty and Brittany Gibson, “The AP and the White House Correspondents Association wanted to (expletive) around. Now it's finding out time.”


** Speaking of Trump media changes
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Check out Mother Jones’ Anna Merlan with “Meet the New State Media.” ([link removed])

Merlan wrote, “From the moment Trump returned to office, his second administration has prioritized giving access and status to an array of far-right influencers and news outlets, including figures with checkered pasts and thin or nonexistent journalistic credentials. In doing so, the administration has created a swell of flattering media coverage, a gauzy bubble around its every decision, no matter how destructive or incoherent. This new state media displays unquestioning loyalty, and its propaganda pipeline is speedier than ever, ensuring that every executive order or new move by the Department of Government Efficiency is greeted with rapturous pseudo-reporting the moment it’s announced.”


** Other media news, tidbits and interesting links for your review …
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* The National Association of Black Journalists met with NBCUniversal’s head of diversity to express concerns about recent programming changes at MSNBC. Earlier this week, the network canceled Joy Reid’s nightly show. In a statement ([link removed]) , the NABJ said, “While we congratulate Symone Sanders-Townsend, Michael Steele and Alicia Menendez on their new roles in Reid’s former time slot, we remain concerned about industry-wide patterns in which Black talent is disproportionately affected by corporate changes. We have also learned that other journalists and commentators representing diverse communities have been removed from their slots.” They added, “As we continue examining this issue and working with NBCUniversal on their commitments to diversity, we urge news leaders across the board to recognize that removing Black voices affects how networks shed light on issues of great importance to our communities.
Reducing those voices also limits the diversity of content and viewpoints. Networks must also ensure that more Black journalists by trade have opportunities to contribute. We urge all news platforms to add rather than subtract from the diversity of their talent—both on-camera and behind the scenes.”
* The New York Times’ Katie Robertson with “New York Public Radio to Lay Off About 7% of Staff.” ([link removed])
* The Daily Show’s Jon Stewart goes on a brilliant rant about DOGE, which includes cutting his hand while smashing a coffee mug. Here’s the must-see video ([link removed]) .
* The Wall Street Journal’s Isabella Simonetti profiles Oliver Darcy, the former CNN media reporter who ventured out on his own and now authors the highly read Status media newsletter: “He Left CNN to Start a Newsletter. It’s Now a Must-Read.” ([link removed])
* Writing for the Columbia Journalism Review, Steven Mufson with “The Real Story of the Washington Post’s Editorial Independence.” ([link removed])
* ProPublica’s Craig Silverman with “As Facebook Abandons Fact-Checking, It’s Also Offering Bonuses for Viral Content.” ([link removed])
* The latest podcast from The New York Times’ Ezra Klein and guest — former C.I.A. media analyst and author Martin Gurri: “A Theory of Media That Explains 15 Years of Politics.” ([link removed])
* My Poynter colleague, Amaris Castillo, with “A new book is training the next generation of journalists — before they even hit high school.” ([link removed])
* The Washington Post’s Tobi Raji and Joe Heim with “As Musk tears through Washington, some Tesla owners feel buyer’s remorse.” ([link removed])
* NBC News’ Brandy Zadrozny with “Anti-vaccine movement falsely blames measles shots for Texas outbreak.” ([link removed])


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* Get an AI ethics framework for your newsroom. Start here ([link removed]) .

Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .
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