Is it legal for Trump to ban media networks from White House? DoJ says access is ‘privilege, not a right’

After US President Donald Trump banned three media outlets from covering him and accessing the White House, the media houses have taken the matter to court. The three outlets sued the Trump administration over the “ban” on their White House access.

US President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House. (AFP)Trump has been critical of CNN and its coverage in the past, but on Monday, he took a further step and ‘banned’ the organisation. The US President said he would bar journalists from these outlets from the White House, citing their reporting as “fake news”.

He said that “free press” is something he “cherishes” and reiterated his criticism of “fake news”, calling it “corrupt”, “totally out of control” and a “threat to national security”.

That raises a pertinent question: Can a US president ban media outlets from reporting on him and the White House?

The US Department of Justice certainly thinks so.

The Department of Justice said in a court filing that Trump can “control reporters' access to restricted presidential areas, such as the Oval Office”, according to an AFP report.

“Access to the White House is a privilege — not a right,” it added.

The court filing said letters explaining the president’s reasons for the ban had been sent to the outlets on Tuesday. They have until Friday to object.

The letters cite numerous “reporting incidents” by the outlets that “threatened national security and spread falsehoods”, according to the filing.

In their lawsuit, the three outlets asked for a temporary restraining order against the ban, arguing that it violates the First Amendment to the US Constitution, which protects freedom of the press.

“This ban could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment nor a more blatant violation of our most fundamental constitutional principles,” the outlets said in the court filing.

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"Without notice or process, the White House revoked our journalists' credentials because it objected to our reporting. Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public's right to independent journalism free from government interference," read the joint statement of the three outlets.

On Tuesday, Trump appeared to suggest that CNN should not be covering him outside the White House either when he spotted the reportes from the organisation at the United Nations office.

“I’m surprised that CNN is here covering me. You shouldn’t be here,” Trump told reporters covering his visit to the United Nations General Assembly.

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