White House Launches ‘Trump TV’ After Banning CNN
The White House launched its own streaming news channel, branded “Trump TV,” on Monday evening — three days after President Donald Trump barred reporters from CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the building over accusations of “fake news.” The move deepens an escalating confrontation between the administration and the mainstream press, and it landed the same day the three banned outlets filed a federal lawsuit challenging their exclusion.
According to VRT NWS, the White House announced the channel on social media with the message “TRUMP TV IS STREAMING NOW,” promising 24/7 updates featuring “top moments from the past, announcements, and the latest and best of the administration all in one place.” The livestream runs on the White House’s YouTube channel and through the “Live” section of the White House app.
A ‘Greatest Hits’ Feed, Not a Newsroom
The channel’s first livestream opened with a two-month-old clip of Trump speaking at Mount Rushmore. As of the morning after the launch, roughly 1,000 people had watched, VRT reported — a modest audience that contrasted with the administration’s promotional framing of a major media venture.
The Washington Sun reported that teasers appeared on White House social media Monday morning, teasing that “something’s coming,” followed by a flashy promotional video promising a nonstop live feed beginning at 7 p.m. The announcement urged viewers to “Watch the Trump Administration’s biggest moments all in one place… Top videos, major remarks, and must-see highlights streaming 24/7 and updated in real time.”
Trump spokesperson Kaelan Dorr clarified that Trump TV would be “a livestream of the Administration’s greatest hits, unfiltered,” running past clips highlighting moments he said were not featured in mainstream news. “The press, in some cases, reported inaccurately or not at all on the Administration’s many record breaking accomplishments on behalf of all Americans,” Dorr said.
The promotion prompted speculation — including from California Governor Gavin Newsom — that the administration was building a state-run newsroom.
The Ban That Preceded It
The launch came three days after Trump announced on Truth Social that CNN, MS NOW (formerly MSNBC) and Politico would be barred from the White House for what he called “constantly spreading fake news.” He warned that “Other Fake News Media Outlets” could follow. On Saturday, journalists from the three outlets were denied entry and had their hard press passes confiscated by Secret Service agents, according to CNBC. CNN reporter Betsy Klein and MS NOW correspondent Akayla Gardner were among those whose credentials were taken.
On Monday, the three outlets sued in federal court in Washington, D.C., arguing the ban violates the First Amendment and the Due Process Clause. “This ban could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment nor a more blatant violation of our most fundamental constitutional principles,” the complaint states.
In a joint statement, the outlets said: “Without notice or process, the White House revoked our journalists’ credentials because it objected to our reporting. Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public’s right to independent journalism free from government interference.”
Trump responded on Truth Social that he was not attacking a free press. “The White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, something which I cherish. It is instituting an assault on the FAKE NEWS,” he wrote, calling it “a threat to our National Security.” The president had not previously cited national security to justify the ban.
Solidarity From the Networks
USA Today reported that the five networks making up the White House television pool — ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox News and CNN — said they would no longer send camera crews to events designated as “pool coverage,” in solidarity with CNN. “There will be no replacement pool put in place,” said Bryan Boughton, Fox News’ D.C. bureau chief and chair of the television pool.
With the networks withdrawing, no television crews were scheduled to travel with Trump to New York for the United Nations General Assembly.
The case was assigned to Judge Timothy Kelly, a Trump appointee who in 2018 ordered the White House to restore the press pass of then-CNN correspondent Jim Acosta. Kelly directed the Justice Department to respond to the outlets’ request for a temporary restraining order by Tuesday and scheduled a hearing for Wednesday afternoon.
Trump criticized Kelly by name in a social media post, predicting an unfavorable ruling. “In other words, almost without question and, as usual, we’ll go for appeal,” he wrote.
The White House defended the ban, saying the First Amendment “protects their right to publish; it does not entitle them to a hard pass, briefing room seat, or place in the press pool.”
What to Watch
Legal observers see the case as a significant test of press access under the First Amendment. Jameel Jaffer, executive director of the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, said the president’s decision to bar the outlets “for the content of their reporting is a flagrant violation of the First Amendment.”
Jacqui Heinrich, president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, noted that courts have repeatedly held that once the White House grants access to journalists, it cannot revoke that access arbitrarily. The suit also echoes Sherrill v. Knight, a 1977 ruling that the White House cannot deny press passes based on the content of coverage.
It also overlaps with an ongoing case brought by the Associated Press over its partial exclusion tied to the “Gulf of Mexico” naming dispute — a sign that the broader battle over press access will likely require appellate courts to resolve.
For now, the administration is pressing ahead on two fronts: defending its ban in court on Wednesday and streaming its own version of the news straight from the White House.