The US Justice Department has opened an investigation into the decision by major television networks last month to temporarily halt coverage of President Donald Trump. A department spokesperson, Emily Convington, said on Saturday that the agency is examining whether the networks violated federal antitrust law through that boycott.
The probe targets five networks: ABC, CBS, CNN, NBC and Fox News. According to Convington, "group boycotts among commercial competitors can violate the Sherman Act," the US antitrust statute. "The Antitrust Division is simply investigating to determine whether these news organizations violated antitrust law," she said.
The move follows the pause in presidential coverage last month by the five-network group, which shares the costs of covering the president, rotates pooled coverage and shares footage with news organizations nationwide. Before that, the administration had revoked White House access badges for reporters from three outlets: CNN, MS NOW and Politico.
On September 19, the White House declared that covering the president is "a privilege – not a right." The outlets whose badges were revoked sued the administration, arguing the exclusion violated the First Amendment and that the White House was retaliating over their coverage.
The five networks – CNN among them – suspended coverage as an act of solidarity and refused to provide substitute content. On September 24, the White House restored the access badges after Federal Judge Timothy Kelly ruled that the ban was likely unconstitutional and ordered the administration to "immediately return, restore and reinstate" the outlets' access. Disputes over access to certain specific presidential events and over newsgathering assignments have continued, however.
Jose Zamora, the Committee to Protect Journalists' Americas director, criticized the administration's investigation decision on Saturday. Writing on X, he said: "The government should not use antitrust investigations to intimidate news organizations defending press access. The public's right to know depends on that access."
The networks did not immediately comment on the announcement. The investigation is the latest development in a series of tensions between the Trump administration and major media outlets, as the US president has repeatedly called mainstream media "fake news" and frequently clashed with reporters.
