A federal judge has ordered the Trump administration to restore the Associated Press’s full media access, which was suspended after the news organization said it would not follow Trump’s executive order to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.
The Trump-appointed federal judge ruled that the White House does not have the authority to ban the AP from attending official presidential events on First Amendment grounds.
“Under the First Amendment, if the Government opens its doors to some journalists—be it to the Oval Office, the East Room, or elsewhere—it cannot then shut those doors to other journalists because of their viewpoints,” U.S. District Judge Trevor McFadden wrote in his decision.
The AP says it has been barred from covering Trump in the Oval Office or aboard Air Force One since Feb 11, with only “sporadic” permission to cover him at events in the East Room of the White House, which is typically used for large scale events and press conferences.
Lauren Easton, a spokesperson for the Associated Press, said the ruling “affirms the fundamental right of the press and public to speak freely without government retaliation,” as guaranteed in the Constitution.
The Trump Administration’s decision to rename the Gulf of Mexico in government language was among his first official actions in his second term as President. The move was lambasted by some detractors, Democratic officials and international pundits who called it a performative action meant to rile his base.
While multiple news outlets decided to modify their own style guides to accommodate the name change, the AP said it would continue to refer to the body of water by the name it’s held for hundreds of years and that it is recognized by the rest of the international community.
Attacking the AP’s decision not to modify its stylebook, which is among the most influential and oft-used newsroom guides, was derided by Trump who referred to the news organization as a bunch of “radical left lunatics” and vowed to keep it out of the White House until they got in line with the executive order.
While McFadden wrote in his ruling that the AP was not entitled to “‘first in line every time’ permanent press pool access” it has enjoyed under previous administrations, he said the White House could not treat the organization worse than its peers.
The AP, which was established in the 1840s and is one of the oldest news organizations in America and among the most respected and cited on the planet, said the White House ban has cost the agency a $150,000 contract from a concerned client.
The Associated Press stylebook is the primary style guide used by KTLA.com.
