CNN's Brian Stelter Praises Fox News for White House Press Ban Boycott
Stelter called Fox News an 'ally' for joining CNN, MS NOW, and Politico in boycotting White House pool coverage.
CNN media reporter Brian Stelter commended Fox News on Thursday for its solidarity with CNN, MS NOW, and Politico during a recent White House press ban. The boycott by multiple news organizations, including Fox News, was in protest of the Trump administration revoking credentials for the three outlets.
A federal judge ordered the White House to reinstate the outlets on Thursday morning, and by noon, they had regained access. Stelter and CNN anchor Dana Bash discussed the situation live on air.
Bash highlighted that Fox News, NBC, ABC, and CBS had refused to participate in the president's pool coverage since Monday. "It is so important to underscore the solidarity that the other networks... have shown with CNN and Politico and MS NOW because everybody understands the stakes," Bash stated, framing the issue as crucial for the free press at large.
Stelter specifically acknowledged Fox News, calling it a "real ally" to CNN and other networks. He suggested that Fox's stance might be influenced by past experiences during the Obama administration, when a similar attempt was made to bar a reporter. In 2009, an effort to exclude Major Garrett from a multipool interview was protested by ABC, CBS, CNN, and NBC, ultimately failing.
Stelter also speculated that Fox News might be considering future administrations, anticipating that a Democratic president could potentially implement similar restrictive measures. He described the nearly weeklong ban as an example of "democratic backsliding," a phenomenon scholars of autocratic behavior observe with increasing frequency emanating from the White House.
Earlier, Jacqui Heinrich, Fox News' lead White House correspondent and president of the White House Correspondents' Association, had publicly criticized the ban. She stated that revoking access for journalists from CNN, POLITICO, and MSNOW violated the First Amendment and warned that such actions could be applied to any news outlet in the future. Heinrich urged the administration to immediately restore their access.
Bash also expressed personal gratitude to Bryan Boughton, Fox's DC Bureau Chief and chair of the television pool, for his role in organizing the boycott. She described his actions as "a profile in courage and doing what is right."