President Donald Trump wanted to control who covered him at the White House. Now the television crew that stepped into the gap has drawn a warning from journalists who spent years covering presidents.
The controversy erupted during Trump’s trip to New York for the United Nations General Assembly.
A video that thrilled one of his supporters quickly raised a different question among veteran White House reporters.
It was a striking turn for a president who had just accused news outlets he dislikes of threatening national security. This time, the concern came from the coverage that followed his decision to shut them out.
Real America’s Voice filmed from inside Trump’s motorcade as it left the UN campus and traveled through New York. Former White House Correspondents’ Association leaders warned that airing footage of a presidential motorcade’s movements could create a security risk. Neither the Secret Service nor the White House has publicly said whether this particular video exposed Trump’s location.
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The pro-Trump outlet began providing footage after Trump banned CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House. CNN had been scheduled to handle television pool coverage during his New York trip. ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox News then suspended their own pool coverage in solidarity.
Conservative commentator Nick Sortor praised the footage, thanking Real America’s Voice for “showing us RAW footage of how difficult it is to keep President Trump safe.”
CBS News correspondent and former WHCA president Weijia Jiang saw a problem. “For decades, the [WHCA] has advised poolers not to air video of taillights because it’s a potential risk to the security of the motorcade,” she wrote on X in response to Sortor’s post.
NBC News correspondent and former WHCA president Kelly O’Donnell echoed the concern. She said the association has long relayed guidance from the Secret Service and administrations about video that should be withheld or used with limits for security reasons.
Presidential motorcades use similar-looking vehicles to make it harder for spectators to tell which one carries the president, according to The Daily Beast. The journalists warned about the risk of airing the footage; they did not establish that viewers identified Trump’s vehicle from this clip.
The warning adds a new twist to Trump’s fight with the press. On Monday, he accused news organizations of threatening national security by publishing what he called false stories from unnamed sources. He also demanded “Decorum, Respect, and Dignity” in the Oval Office and called members of the press “Third Rate Clowns.”
Social media users quickly turned his words back on him.
“I completely agree that the Oval Office should not be defiled by Third Rate Clowns. So the question is whether he’s removed by impeachment, resignation or the 25th Amendment,” one X user wrote.
Another added, “Says he who has defiled the Oval Office more than anyone in history.”
Still another repeated Trump’s call for “Decorum, Respect, and Dignity,” adding, “Trump got that part right, no more throwing spaghetti at the walls…”
CNN, MS NOW and Politico filed a joint federal lawsuit Monday, calling the ban a violation of their First Amendment rights. Trump denies attacking press freedom and says his restrictions target what he calls “FAKE NEWS.”
