White House excludes CNN from Air Force One trip after federal judge orders media access restored

Travel exclusion in Tennessee

The White House removed CNN from the presidential travel pool on Friday night ahead of a trip to Tennessee scheduled for Saturday, 26 September 2026. President Donald Trump traveled to Neyland Stadium in Knoxville to attend a college football game between the University of Tennessee and the University of Texas beginning at midday. CNN had been scheduled to serve as the television pool representative on Air Force One under the longstanding five-network rotation. The revised White House schedule substituted alternative outlets, with guidance documents citing Lindell TV, operated by businessman Mike Lindell, and Real America's Voice News. Neither organization is a member of the standard television pool that distributes shared video feeds to national news organizations.

Federal court order and credential dispute

The travel exclusion followed a ruling issued on Thursday, 24 September 2026, by US District Judge Timothy Kelly in Washington. Trump had revoked White House press credentials for CNN, Politico, and MS NOW on 18 September 2026, accusing them of reporting fiction and lies about his administration. Judge Kelly, an appointee of Donald Trump, issued a temporary restraining order restoring credentials for 14 days, ruling that the outlets were likely to succeed on claims that their constitutional due process rights were violated. The court held that established legal precedent requires notice and an opportunity to be heard before revoking issued press passes. Judge Kelly set a 28 September 2026 deadline for the outlets and the government to submit further legal arguments.

In his written decision, Judge Kelly stated that the government provided no factual evidence that the reporting endangered government functions.

“Defendants offer no declarations or other support - classified or unclassified - explaining how any of the reporting they identified in their letters to Plaintiffs damaged the national security.”

Network boycott and brief resumption

Following the ban on 18 September 2026, the four other rotating broadcast networks (ABC, CBS, Fox News, and NBC) declined to participate in pool coverage in solidarity with the excluded journalists. The protest reduced television footage of executive events, including arrivals during a diplomatic visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping. In response to the broadcast pause, the White House launched an online streaming service called Trump TV ahead of the United Nations General Assembly in New York. Normal pool coverage resumed on Friday, 25 September 2026, when network reporters returned to the grounds to document Trump and Xi inspecting America's founding documents at the National Archives.

CNN senior White House correspondent Kristen Holmes confirmed the return of broadcast operations on Friday morning.

“There will be pool coverage.”

Ongoing dispute over pool access

The decision to remove CNN from Air Force One created an immediate dispute over the scope of the federal injunction. Although building access was restored on Thursday, White House officials continued to deny entry to CNN and MS NOW journalists assigned to cover arrivals for a state dinner with Xi Jinping. White House communications staff posted on social media that media organizations do not hold free rein over every presidential event and press call. Attorney Theodore Boutrous Jr, speaking on CNN's "The Lead with Jake Tapper", argued that the court order applies to pool travel obligations. CNN legal analyst Eli Honig stated that while the written text specified White House passes, excluding the pool broadcaster from Air Force One conflicts with the ruling's intent.