News outlets win a round against Trump’s press ban — but the fight is far from over

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—– is driving the US market Something isn’t loading properly. Please check back later. Business Media 3 min read News outlets win a round against Trump’s press ban — but the fight is far from over Analysis by Brian Stelter Updated Oct 14, 2026, 3:08 PM ET Published Oct 14, 2026, 3:08 PM ET PUBLISHED Oct 14, 2026, 3:08 PM ET Tents belonging to CNN and MS NOW remained dark and unoccupied early on September 24, 2026, in Washington, DC. Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Donald Trump Human rights Federal agencies See all topics Facebook Tweet Email Link Threads Link Copied! Follow News outlets and press freedom advocates are cheering the latest court ruling against President Donald Trump’s press ban, while cautioning that he will keep trying to punish news coverage he dislikes.

CNN chairman and editor-in-chief Mark Thompson said news outlets have to be “forever vigilant” about First Amendment rights.

The Justice Department plans to appeal the latest ruling, and its antitrust division is also probing the five major TV networks over how the White House TV pool operates.

With all that in mind, Thompson said it’s necessary to “be prepared to fight and to go on fighting.”

“I mean, this topic is one we’re never going to back down from,” he said. “And no matter how many court cases, investigations, court appearances and all the expense that that entails, we will fight this one to the end.”

CNN CNN chief reacts to judge’s ruling on Trump press ban

1:08 On Tuesday night, US District Judge Timothy P. Kelly ruled that Trump’s mid-September ban of CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House likely violated the First Amendment.

Kelly issued a preliminary injunction protecting journalists’ access to the White House while the lawsuit continues.

“It’s not the end of the matter, I mean, sooner or later there may be a trial,” Thompson said in an interview on CNN. “But I think it’s a really big boost — the judge essentially saying our complaint is likely to succeed” at trial.

Thompson called it “a vote of confidence in free speech” and the public’s right “to hear their political leader held to account by the press.”

Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press president Bruce D. Brown noted that the ruling “protects not only CNN, MS NOW, and Politico, but all the other holders of White House passes who continued to work under the threat of retaliation.”

But other tests involving White House access are likely. In a recent interview with TIME, Trump complained about The New York Times and said “maybe they’ll be next” to be banned.

And even with a temporary restraining order in place earlier this month, the White House blocked CNN from boarding Air Force One, apparently citing ongoing litigation with The Associated Press.

“We welcome Judge Kelly’s order, but we are concerned that the White House continues to ban some news outlets from the White House press pool, where President Trump speaks the most with reporters,” Katie Fallow, the deputy litigation director at the Knight First Amendment Institute, said in a statement.

“We are also concerned that the White House is still threatening to ban other journalists from the White House because he disagrees with their reporting,” Fallow added. “That practice is unconstitutional, and harms both the press and the public, which relies on journalists to report independently on the president and his administration.”

Nora Benavidez, senior counsel at Free Press, said in a Wednesday statement Kelly’s ruling “affirms that presidential cherry-picking of newsroom access violates core First Amendment principles. A powerful district court ruling citing strong First Amendment precedent isn’t the end, however.”

Flyers supporting the Associated Press, CNN, MS NOW and Politico inside of the White House briefing room in Washington, DC, on September 21, 2026. Alex Wroblewski/AFP/Getty Images Trump has escalated his anti-media rhetoric in recent months, sometimes even claiming that responsible reporting is “treasonous.”

The Justice Department, the FCC and other agencies have followed his lead and taken action against individual journalists and news outlets in ways that have been widely denounced by First Amendment groups.

And Trump has trumpeted his administration’s pressure campaign against the press. On Tuesday night, during a rally in Alaska, he pointed to FCC chairman Brendan Carr and quipped that Carr is “the most feared man in government.”

Carr has pursued or threatened multiple investigations into broadcasters, including a new probe of ABC News over a since-corrected report about business investments involving Trump’s sons. His agency is currently pursuing a highly unusual challenge of ABC’s local station licenses, a move Disney is challenging in court as unconstitutional retaliation.

Numerous former FCC officials of both parties have decried the “weaponization” of the FCC under Carr.