EDITORIAL: Trump should restore White House press access

President Donald Trump has often sparred effectively with the mainstream media outlets. His latest skirmish, however, is a misstep.

On Friday, Mr. Trump announced that CNN, MS NOW and Politico were no longer welcome in the White House. He justified this decision by writing on Truth Social that they constantly report “fake news.”

Over the weekend, those outlets said their reporters weren’t able to access the White House. One reporter said officials took her press badge away. The three news organizations are now suing.

“Without notice or process, the White House revoked our journalists’ credentials because it objected to our reporting,” the outlets said in a joint statement. “Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public’s right to independent journalism free from government interference.”

As is his habit, Mr. Trump attacked District Court Judge Timothy Kelly, who was assigned to hear the case. In 2018, Mr. Kelly ruled against the White House in a similar dispute involving former CNN reporter Jim Acosta. Ironically, Mr. Trump appointed Mr. Kelly in 2017.

In response, the other networks in the television pool decided not to participate in it. Because of space constraints, pool events are covered by one outlet, which shares its video with other news organizations. Whether the timing was intentional or not, on Monday, the White House launched Trump TV, which it said will be “streaming 24/7.”

While kicking antagonistic networks out of the White House may feel personally satisfying, it’s the wrong move. Press outlets should have the ability to report freely and criticize the president. Those are essential elements of a free press — and a free country. An adversarial press is essential to examining trade-offs and ferreting out corruption.

If a certain outlet is wrong in its reporting, the proper response is to discredit them in the arena of ideas. In that battle, Mr. Trump has widely succeeded. As a 2025 Gallup poll showed, Americans’ trust in media is at an all-time low. But even disliked news organizations still have First Amendment rights.

That was true in 2009, when President Barack Obama and his team frequently attacked Fox News.

“We don’t think we need to treat them as though they are a news organization the way other news organizations here are treated,” then-White House Communications Director Anita Dunn said at the time.

Sounds familiar. That was the Obama version of “fake news.” But when the Obama administration tried to limit access for Fox News’ pool reporters, other outlets pressured the White House to stop.

The Obama administration eventually backed down. Mr. Trump should do the same.