The US Department of Justice has launched an investigation into five TV channels over their boycott of the coverage of Trump's events.
The U.S. Department of Justice is investigating possible antitrust violations by five major television networks after they temporarily refused to provide joint coverage of events held by President Donald Trump at the White House, NBC News reports, citing a department official.
The investigation concerns NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN, and Fox News—networks that are part of the White House television press pool. According to the Justice Department official, the agency sent formal requests to the networks on Friday seeking information as part of a civil investigation. Emily Covington, a representative of the Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, stated that the agency is investigating whether television networks have violated the Sherman Act, which prohibits, among other things, certain types of agreements between competitors. According to her, a collective refusal by commercial entities to cooperate could fall under the scope of this law.
The television press pool operates on a rotation system in which representatives from various networks take turns recording the President's speeches and other public events, subsequently sharing the video and audio footage with other participants and subscribers. These include Newsmax, One America News Network, C-SPAN, and foreign media outlets.
As *The New York Times* previously reported, the investigation was launched against the backdrop of escalating tensions between the Trump administration and journalists. Last month, the President ordered that CNN, MSNBC, and Politico be barred from the White House grounds, accusing them of spreading "fake news."
Following CNN's exclusion, other networks also briefly refused to participate in joint coverage of events. Meanwhile, individual news organizations—including NBC News—continued to independently cover White House events open to the press.
CNN, MSNBC, and Politico challenged the restrictions in court, arguing that the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech and the press, had been violated. The court ordered the administration to temporarily restore their access for 14 days and later extended the order until Tuesday. Five television networks had previously issued a joint statement emphasizing that the public has an interest in receiving accurate and independent information about the government's activities, and that the administration should not restrict media access simply because it is displeased with their coverage.
Bruce Brown, Executive Director of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, stated that the First Amendment protects the right of news organizations to independently decide which events to cover. He described the investigation as yet another, even more blatant attempt to intimidate journalists.
ABC News reported that it has not yet received notification from the Department of Justice but expects to do so. Representatives for NBC, CBS, and CNN declined to comment, while Fox News did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The White House also did not provide a comment.
