The facts
Donald Trump has announced that he is banning outlets CNN, MS Now and Politico from the White House over their coverage. In a post on his Truth Social platform on Friday afternoon, September 18, 2026, the US president said he was expelling the news outlets over what he called their “constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!” and threatened that bans for others outlets could follow. He stated, “Media Outlets shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America. Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow.” The Guardian notes that since returning to office, Trump has overseen an unprecedented restriction of access for major traditional news media at the White House. This includes the Associated Press, which was banned from press pool events in the Oval Office and on Air Force One after it continued to use Gulf of Mexico instead of Gulf of America in its coverage. The Pentagon also attempted to introduce a new press policy to restrict the ability of journalists to gather and report on sensitive information, which culminated in a mass walkout of news media outlets who refused to sign the pledge. A federal judge later ruled the policy was unconstitutional. The president has also launched high-profile legal battles with major outlets including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, CNN, ABC News and the BBC.
Our take
Donald Trump has decided that the best way to deal with journalism is to treat the White House briefing room like a shitty nightclub with a velvet rope, and he’s the bouncer with a tiny, easily bruised ego. In a post so petulant it practically drips with chewed-up Big Mac wrapper, he announced the banning of CNN, MS Now, and Politico for the crime of “constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS!” The scare quotes around “reporting” are the chef’s kiss of this particular bullshit sandwich, implying the act of journalism is itself a fraudulent concept when applied to him.
This isn’t a policy; it’s a fucking sulk, codified. It’s the presidential equivalent of putting your fingers in your ears and shouting LA LA LA I CAN’T HEAR YOUR FACTS! But since he can’t physically do that during a press conference, he’s just kicking out anyone who might bring facts into the room. The threat that “other Fake News Media Outlets” are next turns the entire Fourth Estate into a game of musical chairs where the music is Hail to the Chief and the penalty for losing is getting your credentials flushed down a gold toilet.
Of course, this pathetic little power play is part of a broader, dumber pattern. Remember when he banned the Associated Press from the press pool for using the geographically correct “Gulf of Mexico” instead of his made-up “Gulf of America”? That’s the level of infantile grievance we’re dealing with. The man would ban a meteorologist for reporting “rain” if he’d just declared it a beautiful sunny day for his golf score.
The Pentagon’s attempt to muzzle the press with an unconstitutional loyalty oath already blew up in their faces, resulting in a glorious mass walkout. Now Trump is just doing it himself, one tantrum-post at a time. He’s not fighting the news; he’s trying to build a pillow fort of sycophancy in the Oval Office, stocked only with outlets that agree he’s the bestest, most bigly president ever. It’s a strategy for a toddler, not a head of state. The only thing getting exposed here is how thin his skin is and how deep his shithole of insecurity goes.
