The Justice Department has opened an antitrust investigation into five of the nation’s largest television networks, including Fox News and CNN, over claims that they coordinated a boycott of President Donald Trump’s White House events.
Federal investigators are examining whether ABC, CBS, CNN, NBC and Fox News violated competition laws by jointly suspending their shared television coverage after the Trump administration blocked CNN journalists from the White House.
The probe intensifies Trump’s increasingly combative relationship with the news media and could subject some of America’s most influential broadcasters to legal scrutiny over their decision to oppose restrictions placed on one of their competitors.
According to six people familiar with the matter who spoke to The New York Times, Justice Department officials contacted the networks on Friday and requested internal communications and records concerning their joint coverage arrangements.
At the heart of the investigation is the White House television pool, a decades-old system in which broadcasters rotate responsibility for filming presidential events and distributing the footage to other news organizations.
That arrangement was thrown into turmoil last month after Trump restricted access for CNN, Politico and MS NOW, accusing the outlets of publishing coverage that was unfairly hostile to his administration.
In response, the five networks temporarily halted their pooled coverage, leaving some major White House events without the standard shared television feed.
One affected event was Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. Footage of the two leaders greeting each other was not distributed through the networks’ usual pool system.
CNN’s broadcast booth on the White House grounds was left empty last month after Trump barred the network from the premises
Betsy Klein told CNN viewers that her press pass had been deactivated and that she was denied entry to the White House, forcing her to report from across the street
Politico White House reporter Cheyenne Haslett also had her credentials revoked after President Donald Trump banned CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House
The networks’ apparent united front angered Trump, who accused them of intentionally withholding coverage from what he considered a significant diplomatic event.
The Justice Department is now assessing whether the coordinated decision could constitute an unlawful agreement between commercial rivals.
In a statement issued Saturday, department spokeswoman Emily Covington said the networks had “proudly boycotted covering White House events.”
“Group boycotts among commercial competitors can violate the Sherman Act,” Covington said.
“The Antitrust Division is simply investigating to determine whether these news organizations have violated the antitrust laws.”
The Sherman Act, a foundational U.S. antitrust law, prohibits certain agreements between businesses that improperly restrict competition.
The networks regularly compete for audiences, advertising income and exclusive reporting. However, they have also worked together for years through the White House pool to ensure presidential events are filmed and made available to the broader news media.
The investigation will examine whether that longstanding cooperation crossed a legal boundary when the networks collectively stopped providing pool services in protest against the restrictions on CNN.
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MS NOW reporter Akayla Gardner reported from across the street from the White House, left, compared with an earlier image of her smiling on the White House grounds, right
The networks’ coordinated suspension deprived viewers of the usual shared coverage of key moments during Trump’s meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping, provoking the president’s anger
The Times reported that officials had been considering a potential investigation for at least a week.
The inquiry is still at an early stage and is being led by the Justice Department’s civil division, headed by Associate Attorney General Stanley Woodward, a former White House lawyer.
The letters sent to the networks on Friday requested communications among executives and other officials about decisions involving pool coverage.
Investigators also sought correspondence concerning the administration’s decision to remove CNN’s access to parts of the White House operation.
The investigation follows weeks of intensifying friction between Trump and reporters covering his second presidency.
On September 18, Trump barred CNN, Politico and MS NOW from the White House grounds, accusing them of publishing what he called “purposely negative stories.”
The three organizations challenged the restrictions in federal court, arguing that the administration had violated their First Amendment protections.
The Trump administration defended the policy by arguing that access to the White House was a “privilege,” not an unconditional right.
A federal judge later issued a temporary order restoring access for the organizations, but the conflict did not end there.
While CNN journalists were allowed back onto the White House campus, administration officials continued to prevent the network from performing scheduled television pool duties when Trump traveled aboard Air Force One.
During an Oval Office address, Trump said there was no specific reason for the ban
The other major networks eventually resumed their individual pool assignments on September 25.
Even so, the shared television feed has remained unavailable during events when CNN would normally have been responsible for providing coverage.
Trump voiced his displeasure after the disruption affected coverage of his meetings with Xi.
In a social media post, the president accused several news organizations of refusing to cover “one of the Biggest and Most Beautiful Events to take place in many years.”
The Daily Mail contacted ABC, CBS, CNN, NBC and Fox News for comment late Saturday night.
