ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox News Halt Trump Pool Coverage in CNN Protest
ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox News have pulled their cameras from White House pool coverage of President Donald Trump.
The four networks acted together on Monday, Sept. 21, in solidarity with CNN after the Trump administration blocked CNN from carrying out its assigned pool duties, according to Variety.
The pool is a simple rota system. One network films the president each day and shares the pictures and sound with the rest, so every channel can show the same moments. ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox and NBC take turns holding that daily role, according to CNN.
In a joint statement Monday, the networks said the public has a vital interest in receiving accurate, independent information about its government. They said no administration should restrict a news organisation because it objects to its reporting.
The message to stand down came from Fox News Washington bureau chief Bryan Boughton, the current TV pool chair. In an email to the other networks, Boughton said that effective Sept. 21 the TV pool would not cover events listed as pool coverage of the president and that no replacement crew would be put in place.
The Trump administration had suspended CNN as the designated TV pool provider for Monday, Sept. 21. That left no TV pool provider for the day.
The immediate effect is a blackout of shared TV pictures. No major television network will provide pool coverage of Trump's scheduled appearances Monday at the White House and his visit to the United Nations in New York City.
The dispute follows a ban announced last week. On Sept. 18, Trump said he was banning CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House, according to Reuters. White House staff then denied access to journalists from those three outlets on Sept. 19.
Legal action followed on Monday. CNN, MS NOW and Politico sued Trump and three White House officials over the ban, alleging it violates the First Amendment.
For viewers, this means a gap in the usual feed. Without a pool crew inside those events, there are no shared pictures for channels to air and for audiences to watch later.
