The White House announced on Tuesday (April 4) that several news agencies, including Reuters and Bloomberg, will no longer be permanent members of the White House press corps and will not be able to interview US President Donald Trump up close in the future. This move is also seen as the White House further strengthening its control over media questions and real-time reporting of Trump's words and deeds.
'Reuters” reported that new guidelines released by White House officials on Tuesday showed that White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt has full authority to decide the list of press corps members on a daily basis. The statement said the adjustment is intended to "ensure that the president's message reaches the target audience and that media with appropriate expertise are accredited to cover the event based on the content of the event."
In the past, the White House press corps was composed of about 10 media outlets in rotation, and members could report first-hand updates such as Trump's meetings with guests in the Oval Office and his domestic and international visits. The new policy states that news agencies will rotate with about 30 other newspapers and print media and will no longer have priority seats. The Associated Press, Bloomberg and Reuters were previously regular members of the press corps.
Previously, the Associated Press was banned by the White House in February for refusing to cooperate with the Trump administration to change the name of the "Gulf of Mexico" to the "Gulf of America". Its reporters were banned from boarding Air Force One and entering the Oval Office. In response, Levitt said his team will have full authority to decide "who will be allowed into places like Air Force One and the Oval Office, and who will be restricted."
It is worth noting that the Associated Press filed a lawsuit in court and won the case last week. The outside world is concerned about whether this case will affect the White House's subsequent promotion of media policy.
