1 week Ago By France 24
A US judge on Tuesday ordered the reinstatement of the Associated Press's access to President Trump's events, ruling the White House cannot exclude media based on their "viewpoints." AP had been barred since February for not adopting his renaming of the Gulf of Mexico. A US federal judge ordered the White House on Tuesday to restore the Associated Press's access to President Donald Trump 's official events, saying it had no right to bar media for their "viewpoints.
" AP journalists and photographers have been barred from the Oval Office and from traveling on Air Force One since mid-February because of the news agency's decision to continue referring to the "Gulf of Mexico" -- and not the "Gulf of America" as decreed by Trump. District Judge Trevor McFadden said the "viewpoint-based denial of the AP's access" was a violation of the First Amendment to the US Constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech and of the press. "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," McFadden said.
"The Government has singled out the AP because of its refusal to update the Gulf's name in its Stylebook," the judge said. "The Government offers no reason besides the Gulf issue for the exclusion." The judge put off implementation of his order for five days to give the White House time to reply or to file an appeal with a higher court.
AP spokeswoman Lauren Easton welcomed the court's decision. Read more on FRANCE 24 English Read also: Free speech in Trump's America: Drawing up the battlelines Trump begins major layoffs at Voice of America, targets US-funded media.
