Donald Trump faced a wave of criticism Monday after his decision to restrict media access appeared to backfire: a White House ribbon-cutting ceremony was broadcast worldwide, but viewers could not hear a word he said.
Trump was unveiling a new granite helipad on the South Lawn alongside construction workers. The $6 million platform was built to accommodate the powerful new Marine One helicopter, which has reportedly scorched parts of the lawn.
However, the absence of the television press pool—normally made up of journalists from ABC, CBS, Fox, CNN and NBC—left the event without usable audio when Trump began speaking. The White House video feed failed to capture his remarks.
The networks had announced earlier Monday that they would suspend presidential TV pool coverage after the administration barred reporters from CNN, MS NOW and Politico over the weekend.
Trump-friendly Newsmax carried the White House livestream, cutting to video of the president speaking outside the building. None of his comments, however, could be heard.
“Okay, there is no microphone because the pool cameras aren’t there,” the anchor told viewers. “So maybe this is one example of this backfiring just a little bit… the ramifications are right here—we can’t hear what the President is saying.”
The silent footage quickly became a target of online ridicule as clips of the ceremony circulated across social media.
Veteran Capitol Hill correspondent Jamie Dupree wrote: “Here is what happens when you don’t have the White House TV Pool. You have video of Trump—but you can’t hear what the President is saying.”
Donald Trump takes part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new White House helipad on the South Lawn before boarding the new Marine One on Monday
CNN’s Kaitlan Collins attends the US Open earlier this month
Another user on X posted: “He wants to be a dictator so bad he banned the Press without realizing it would silence his own voice!”
The White House also launched its own app Monday, promising users “real-time updates and live events streamed DIRECTLY to your phone.”
“No noise. Just the news that matters most—straight from the Trump Administration,” the White House wrote on X.
The media dispute had intensified earlier after CNN, MS NOW and Politico sued the administration, saying their reporters were turned away from the White House gates over the weekend.
“This ban could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment nor a more blatant violation of our most fundamental constitutional principles,” attorneys for the outlets wrote in a 27-page complaint filed Monday.
Several hours later, the major television networks announced that they would suspend presidential pool coverage in support of their colleagues.
Fox News Washington Bureau Chief and current TV pool chair Bryan Boughton wrote in an email to subscribers: “This is to advise that, effective today, the TV pool will not be covering events designated as pool coverage of the President.
“This follows the White House’s position preventing CNN from fulfilling its assigned pool duties. There will be no replacement pool put in place.”
The timing created an immediate problem for Trump as he embarked on a busy diplomatic schedule, traveling to the United Nations General Assembly in New York before returning to Washington to receive Chinese President Xi Jinping.
CNN Senior White House Reporter Betsy Klein reports near the White House complex on Saturday after Donald Trump revoked her credentials
Donald Trump, inside The Beast, arrives at Gracie Mansion for a meeting with New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani in Manhattan’s Upper East Side on September 21
Trump travels through New York’s Upper East Side on Monday as he prepares to meet Mayor Zohran Mamdani and attend the United Nations General Assembly later this week
Xi’s visit is expected to include an elaborate state welcome, but the networks may not provide pool coverage if the suspension remains in place.
Trump is scheduled to greet Xi and his wife, Peng Liyuan, at Joint Base Andrews on Wednesday.
The following morning, the White House will stage a State Arrival Ceremony featuring 479 service members from every branch of the military. A B-2 Spirit and four F-22 Raptors are expected to fly overhead before Trump and Melania host Xi at a State Dinner.
Honor guards have spent days rehearsing on the White House grounds for a welcome intended to echo the reception Beijing gave Trump in May.
According to the South China Morning Post, Trump wanted the helipad finished before Xi arrived, prompting construction crews to work at speed to complete the project.
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It remains unclear whether the events involving Xi will be designated as pool coverage and therefore fall within the scope of the boycott.
“I am proud to announce that, effective immediately, I am banning Fake News CNN, MSNOW (who recently changed their name from MSNBC due to lack of viewership and credibility!), and Politico,” Trump wrote on Truth Social on Friday.
He warned that “other Fake News Media Outlets” could follow and has also threatened to take action against The New York Times and The Washington Post.
Reporters from the three outlets were denied entry when they arrived for work Saturday, while Secret Service officers confiscated their hard passes at the gates.
Melania Trump’s team approved CNN credentials to cover a First Lady event Tuesday despite the White House ban on the network
MS NOW White House Correspondent Vaughn Hillyard reports from a street corner outside the White House grounds Monday after the outlet was banned
CNN’s Betsy Klein, who has covered the White House since 2018, was told that her pass had been deactivated before an officer took it from her.
When MS NOW reporter Akayla Gardner asked why her pass had been disabled, the officer said the matter was “above” him. Politico reporter Cheyenne Haslett was also stripped of her credentials.
CNN had been scheduled to lead the TV pool on Monday, the day of the helipad ceremony, but was removed from the schedule in White House guidance sent at 10:55 p.m. Sunday, according to the lawsuit filed by the three outlets.
The policy immediately affected entire news organizations. The complaint said 40 CNN journalists and 22 MS NOW reporters held hard passes at the time.
The lawsuit names Trump, Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, Communications Director Steven Cheung and Secret Service Director Sean Curran as defendants. It asks a judge to halt the ban and restore the reporters’ credentials.
The case was assigned to US District Judge Timothy Kelly, whom Trump appointed during his first term. Kelly has handled a similar dispute before: in 2018, he ordered the White House to restore CNN reporter Jim Acosta’s credentials after they were revoked following a heated confrontation with Trump.
Trump criticized Kelly on Truth Social, writing: “They have drawn a great Judge, for them, a man who ruled in favor of Jim Acosta, who now seems to have disappeared from the Planet.”
“The Judge’s name is Tim Kelly, and he was, sadly, appointed by ‘TRUMP.’”
White House broadcast tents sit empty Monday following Trump’s media ban
MS NOW correspondent Akayla Gardner reports outside the White House grounds Saturday after President Donald Trump banned her outlet
Trump said he would appeal, arguing that outlets that “only write negatively” should not be granted access to “the most important Office anywhere in the World.”
“It is called the Oval Office, and it should be treated with Decorum, Respect, and Dignity, not defiled by Third Rate Clowns, who purposefully distort, twist, and degrade with everything they write or publish,” he wrote.
“The fact is, I won all seven Swing States, the Popular Vote, the Electoral College (312 to 226), and the Counties throughout America by 86%, and yet it is reported that I get 94% bad publicity.
“Why should I have to give ‘access’ to such people? Perhaps Judge Kelly could explain that!”
He also repeated his demand that Politico repay an alleged “8 Million Dollar contribution” from the US government, claiming it was used to keep the outlet afloat. The lawsuit describes that allegation as “categorically false and debunked.”
Trump told reporters in the Oval Office last week that the ban was not prompted by any single article, instead blaming “cumulative stories over the last two years.”
“You get sick of it,” he said. “I don’t want them in my office. I don’t want them here. I would say the ban would go as far as you can, and if they could straighten themselves out, I’d love it.”
Vice President JD Vance defended the decision Monday, saying: “It’s about basic fairness. They can still report. They still have the access to free speech. They’re just not going to get an office in the White House anymore.”
The First Lady’s office, however, is taking a different position, adding to the uncertainty over how White House coverage will be handled.
Melania Trump’s office approved CNN’s request to cover her announcement at Manhattan’s St. Regis hotel Tuesday, according to a source familiar with the matter who spoke to Our News Outlet.
CNN crews also covered Secretary of State Marco Rubio as he opened the New York Stock Exchange Monday.
