White House restores access to media outlets banned by Trump after judge's order

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This article covers White House restores access to media outlets banned by Trump after judge's order and provides comprehensive coverage of the key details and implications.

CNN White House reporter Betsy Klein was reportedly denied access on Thursday CNN, Politico and MS NOW are back in the White House, hours after a federal judge ruled President Donald Trump's ban on the three news outlets was probably unconstitutional and ordered their access immediately restored. The outlets sought an emergency court hearing to regain entry, accusing the White House in a court filing of having "repeatedly violated" the judge's ruling to lift the ban. It was unclear whether the hearing would go ahead. The White House said it began reinstating access shortly after 09:00 EDT (13:00 GMT) on Thursday, although CNN has disputed the timeline. Trump initially said he barred the outlets because of "fake news". The White House later cited national security. The standoff limited some TV coverage as Trump welcomed Chinese President Xi Jinping to the White House ahead of a state dinner later. In the early hours, Judge Timothy Kelly ruled the ban on the outlets should be temporarily lifted because it "likely violated their constitutional due process rights". CNN, Politico and MS Now all reported being denied entry to the White House on Thursday morning, prompting their request for an emergency hearing. In response, the director of White House Operations said in a court filing that the press passes and confiscated badges had been restored by 09:45. Shortly afterwards, all three outlets said they had been allowed back in. However, networks including Fox News, NBC, CBS and ABC, which pulled out of the White House in solidarity, have yet to confirm they will resume televised coverage. Trump first announced last Friday he was barring CNN, MS Now and Politico from the White House, accusing them of writing "fiction or lies" about his administration. By Saturday morning, each outlet reported that they were denied entry to the White House grounds and that their press badges were confiscated. All three outlets accused the Trump administration of violating their constitutional rights. In a joint statement on Monday, they said they were pursuing legal action to "defend the principle that the government does not decide what the press reports". And more than 50 media organisations across the ideological spectrum filed an amicus brief in support of the lawsuit, including Fox News, the New York Times, the Washington Post and the Wall Street Journal. There have been previous instances of administrations attempting to limit certain outlets' access. The Obama administration tried to exclude Fox News from participating in a specific press pool interview with an administration official in 2009. But after objections from the other four networks in the pool, Fox News was allowed in.