US judge orders White House to 'reinstate' access to CNN, MS NOW and Politico

A US JUDGE has ordered the Trump administration to immediately reinstate White House access for CNN, MS NOW and Politico, after their reporters were banned from the premises.

Judge Timothy Kelly found that the revocation of press passes “likely violated their constitutional due process rights”, according to the ruling.

“The ‘general rule’ is that ‘individuals must receive notice and an opportunity to be heard before the Government deprives them’ of a constitutionally protected interest,” Kelly wrote.

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US President Donald Trump announced that he was banning the news outlets last Friday, accusing them – without specifics – of reporting “fiction and lies.”

He did not say what had prompted the ban, but added that “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.”

The media outlets then announced they would sue Trump and officials in his administration over the ban.

In a joint statement, CNN, MS NOW and Politico said they were filing the lawsuit “to protect our First Amendment rights and defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports or publishes”. 

“Left unchallenged, this threatens press freedom and the public’s right to independent journalism free from government interference,” they said.