Six New Yorkers sue Trump administration over White House media access rules
The lawsuit argues that banning critical outlets from the White House violates the First Amendment rights of the general public to receive independent news.
By Alina Carter ·
Six New York residents filed a federal lawsuit on Monday against President Donald Trump and three White House aides. The complaint argues that the administration’s ban on critical media outlets harms the public, not just the news organizations themselves. The plaintiffs contend that when the White House excludes reporters, it deprives citizens of their right to know what the government is doing.
The suit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. It names President Trump, White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Communications Director Steven Cheung, and Secret Service Director Sean M. Curran as defendants. Katie Fallow, deputy litigation director at the Knight First Amendment Institute, represented the plaintiffs alongside the Yale Law School Media Freedom & Information Access Clinic.
"The First Amendment protects the public’s right to know what its government is doing," Fallow said. She added that the White House cannot determine what information Americans receive by punishing critical reporting. The lawsuit describes the current situation as resulting in something closer to government propaganda for the public.
The six plaintiffs are individuals who rely on independent reporting for their professional duties. They include Kenneth Roth, former executive director of Human Rights Watch; Daniel Froomkin, editor of Press Watch; Beverly Gage, a Yale history professor; Peter Schmidt-Nowara, a high school civics teacher; Benjamin Wittes, editor-in-chief of Lawfare; and Ethan Young, a student journalist at the University of Pennsylvania.
Schmidt-Nowara teaches social studies at Brooklyn Technical High School. He stated that his students deserve access to accurate, independent reporting about their government. He expressed grave concern that the administration's restrictions are cutting off essential information. Young, who edits The Daily Pennsylvanian, said he relies on the White House press corps as a proxy since he cannot personally access the building.
The White House responded to the lawsuit in a statement attributed to an unidentified official. The official said no person may demand access to the Oval Office. The administration argued that media outlets peddling misinformation and defamation can report their stories from outside the building.
This case follows other ongoing legal disputes between the administration and specific news organizations. CNN, MSNBC, and Politico are suing over a ban issued in September. A federal judge recently extended an order preventing the enforcement of that ban. The Associated Press is litigating over reporters being barred from the Oval Office and Air Force One. The New York Times is challenging a Pentagon escort policy, and ABC is in a dispute over broadcast license renewals.
The new lawsuit seeks a broad injunction to protect all news outlets covering the White House from retaliation. The complaint claims the policy is unconstitutional because it imposes viewpoint-based restrictions on a limited public forum. It asks the court to declare the policy invalid and bar the defendants from enforcing it.
