"Fake News" Label Blocks Reporters Again, Sparking Backlash Over "Infringement on Freedom of the Press"

[Anchor]

U.S. President Donald Trump has banned reporters from media outlets critical of him from entering the White House. The affected outlets, as well as pro-Trump media, strongly protested, calling it an infringement on freedom of the press.

Here is a report from Yu Deok-gi.

[Reporter]

The news outlets banned from the White House by President Trump, who claimed they continuously write fake news about him, the Republican Party, and the United States, are news channel CNN, MS NOW, and political publication Politico.

[Donald Trump / U.S. President (local time 18th): Because they are fake news, and people are just tired of reading and encountering that kind of fake news. So we are banning those outlets. And there could be more (media) bans to follow.]

However, specific examples of fake news were not provided.

[Donald Trump / U.S. President (local time 18th): (Is there a specific reason?) No, there wasn't. I'm just sick of it after things piling up over the past few years.]

Reporters from the affected outlets had their White House press credentials suspended the very next day.

[Betsy Klein / CNN White House Correspondent (local time 19th): (At the entrance) The press pass PIN code was not recognized. I asked if I could get my pass back, but the (White House security officer) said they would keep it.]

The affected outlets have signaled legal action based on the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees freedom of the press and speech.

Even reporters and contributors from Fox News, a pro-Trump media outlet, joined in criticizing the violation of press freedom.

The measure reportedly came just hours after top aide Natalie Harp showed Trump a video of MS NOW anchors criticizing the Trump administration.

Reports suggest that as Trump faces a defensive position ahead of the midterm elections due to the quagmire of the war with Iran and high oil prices, his frustration has grown over the lack of political allies on television to take his side.

This is not the first time Trump has blocked White House coverage by dismissing critical media as fake news.

During his first term, after a war of words at a press conference, he stripped a CNN reporter of press credentials, but a federal court ordered the credentials to be restored.

(Video Editing: Lee Seung-yeol, Design: Kim Han-gil)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.