WASHINGTON, United States — CNN, MS NOW, and Politico reported that employees were denied entry to the White House early on Thursday, September 24, 2026.
A federal judge had ordered their access restored.
NBC News reports that the reason for the denials was not immediately clear.
US District Judge Timothy Kelly issued a temporary restraining order requiring the immediate return of the outlets’ press credentials.
The order lasts 14 days while their legal challenge proceeds.
President Donald Trump announced the White House press ban on Friday in a Truth Social post, accusing the organisations of publishing false reports.
The Court’s Findings
Kelly found that the news organisations were likely to prevail on their claim that the administration had denied them constitutionally required due process.
He wrote that they “did not receive notice and an opportunity to be heard before their hard passes were revoked.”
White House letters sent on Tuesday gave the outlets until Friday to contest the revocations in writing.
The letters raised national security concerns and alleged failures of professional conduct.
In his ruling, Kelly found no evidence of formally stated conduct rules in place before the reporting at issue. He said the standard offered in the letters was insufficiently clear.
The judge also said the administration had provided little evidence for its security justification.
Trump’s announcement had focused on his objections to the accuracy and negative tone of the coverage, Kelly noted.
The White House cited articles concerning munitions supplies, sanctions against Russia, renovation funding, and Republican politics.
Kelly described the reporting as routine and noted that some of it dated back months or years.
Media Groups Support the Lawsuit
The outlets’ lawsuit alleges that the ban punished them for their coverage and sought to pressure them into changing it.
The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, the White House Correspondents’ Association, and 49 media organisations submitted a supporting legal brief on Wednesday.
They argued that excluding journalists because of their editorial viewpoints violated the First Amendment.
NBCUniversal Media, the parent company of NBC News, was among the organisations backing the challenge.
The White House did not respond to NBC News’s overnight request for comment.
