Major TV networks have paused their joint coverage of President Donald Trump, marking a historic display of unity, following the White House's decision to prevent CNN from carrying out its press pool responsibilities, according to reports.
The media standoff escalated on Monday after the White House denied CNN the role of pool reporter for the day.
In response, Bryan Boughton, Fox News's Washington bureau chief and acting chair of the television pool consortium, informed members that the TV pool will fully cease coverage of presidential events that require shared pool access, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.
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The network pool, comprising ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and NBC, rotates duties to distribute live footage among the broader press corps. The networks declined to arrange an alternate pool for Trump's planned trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly.
The suspension comes after President Trump announced on Friday that CNN, MS NOW, and Politico would be banned from White House grounds entirely, citing their negative coverage and "fake news".
On Saturday, Secret Service agents refused entry to White House reporters from the three organisations and took their hard-pass press credentials.
In response, the affected news organisations filed a joint federal lawsuit and sought a temporary restraining order against the Trump administration on Monday. The lawsuit claims the ban amounts to viewpoint discrimination that is unconstitutional and directly contravenes the First Amendment.
In a joint statement, the companies asserted they are suing to "protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes."
ALSO READ: Trump Media Ban Takes Effect As CNN, MS NOW Journalists Denied White House Access
Trump defended his decision on social media, writing, "The White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, something which I cherish." He previously noted that if outlets want to write negative stories, "I don't have to let them into the people's house."
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