WASHINGTON, United States — The White House has denied two CNN journalists permission to cover Chinese President Xi Jinping’s return for a state dinner, hours after a federal judge ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to restore the network’s access to the presidential complex.
The decision followed an attempt by White House officials to dictate which categories of CNN journalists could cover the event, according to a CNN report.
The latest restrictions came on Thursday, September 24, 2026, after journalists from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico regained their White House credentials following a court ruling that temporarily blocked Trump’s ban on the three news organisations.
The restrictions concerned coverage of Xi’s return to the White House for the evening event, rather than a renewed blanket prohibition on CNN journalists entering the presidential complex.
Court Orders White House to Restore Press Access
US District Judge Timothy Kelly had ordered the Trump administration to restore access to CNN, MS NOW, and Politico after the three organisations challenged Trump’s decision to exclude their journalists from the White House.
The president announced the ban after accusing the news organisations of publishing false and unfavourable reports about his administration.
The outlets filed a federal lawsuit alleging that the restrictions violated their constitutional rights to freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and due process.
Kelly granted temporary relief, finding that the journalists had been deprived of their press credentials without adequate constitutional procedures.
Despite the ruling, reporters from the three organisations were initially prevented from entering the White House on Thursday morning.
The journalists were eventually readmitted after their lawyers sought an emergency court hearing.
CNN senior White House reporter Betsy Klein was among those who regained access.
According to the Associated Press, the three organisations had been excluded from the White House since Saturday, after Trump announced the restrictions the previous day.
State Visit Disrupted by Press Dispute
The dispute coincided with Xi’s state visit to Washington, where he was welcomed by Trump and First Lady Melania Trump.
The visit included an official arrival ceremony, bilateral discussions, and a state dinner at the White House.
The restrictions on CNN’s access had also disrupted television coverage of the Chinese leader’s arrival.
CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, and Fox News operate a rotating television pool that provides footage of presidential activities to other broadcasters.
After the White House prevented CNN from carrying out its scheduled pool assignment, the other four networks declined to provide replacement coverage.
The arrangement left major American television networks without their usual shared footage of several presidential events during Xi’s visit.
Although the court ruling restored the affected journalists’ general access to the White House, the subsequent decision to exclude two CNN journalists from covering Xi’s return for the state dinner showed that access to individual events remained contested.
The three news organisations’ legal challenge to the administration’s original ban remains unresolved.
