White House imposes new rules on media, decides journalists will ask Trump questions

The White House announced new rules for the media today, now deciding which journalists can ask questions to US President Donald Trump, a task that until now was exclusively the responsibility of the White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA).

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt announced at a press conference that, from now on, it will be the executive branch that selects the members of the small group of journalists, photographers and camera operators who accompany the presidents of the States at their events and transmit the information to thousands of other interested journalists.

“From now on, the White House press corps will determine who is in the press pool,” Karoline Leavitt said.

For almost a century, the tradition at the White House has been for a 'pool' of journalists to cover the President's agenda, since there is not enough space for the hundreds of journalists who want to follow his events in the Oval Office, in other rooms where he speaks or even on the presidential plane Air Force One.

The selection of journalists with access to this pool has traditionally been the responsibility of the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA), founded in 1914 by journalists in response to an unfounded rumor that a congressional committee wanted to decide which reporters could attend the press conferences of then President Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921).

The WHCA's work has been to advocate for greater access for the hundreds of journalists who cover the White House, in the face of attempts by various governments to restrict it.

In addition, it selects, through a rigorous process, the members of the 'pool' who are authorized to attend presidential events and who act as the eyes and ears of the other journalists.

The group of journalists accompanying the President is normally made up of 13 to 14 people, although in some cases it can reach 20. Within this group, there are journalists, known as 'poolers', for different media outlets: one for the written press, one for radio and others for television.

The details of the changes announced by the White House are yet to be defined and it is not known how they will be implemented.

This announcement comes in the context of Trump's confrontation with the US news agency, The Associated Press (AP), to which the Government restricted access to the 'pool', preventing it from asking questions to Trump, due to its decision to continue calling the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of Mexico, instead of adopting the nomenclature decided by the head of state, “Gulf of America”.

The AP filed a lawsuit in court, arguing that Trump's decision violates the right to freedom of the press enshrined in the First Amendment to the Constitution.

However, a judge ruled on Monday that the government could continue to block access to the news agency, although he asked it to reconsider its decision.

The White House announced new rules for the media today, now deciding which journalists can ask questions to US President Donald Trump, a task that until now was exclusively the responsibility of the White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA).

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt announced at a press conference that, from now on, it will be the executive branch that selects the members of the small group of journalists, photographers and camera operators who accompany the presidents of the States at their events and transmit the information to thousands of other interested journalists.

“From now on, the White House press corps will determine who is in the press pool,” Karoline Leavitt said.

For almost a century, the tradition at the White House has been for a 'pool' of journalists to cover the President's agenda, since there is not enough space for the hundreds of journalists who want to follow his events in the Oval Office, in other rooms where he speaks or even on the presidential plane Air Force One.

The selection of journalists with access to this pool has traditionally been the responsibility of the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA), founded in 1914 by journalists in response to an unfounded rumor that a congressional committee wanted to decide which reporters could attend the press conferences of then President Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921).

The WHCA's work has been to advocate for greater access for the hundreds of journalists who cover the White House, in the face of attempts by various governments to restrict it.

In addition, it selects, through a rigorous process, the members of the 'pool' who are authorized to attend presidential events and who act as the eyes and ears of the other journalists.

The group of journalists accompanying the President is normally made up of 13 to 14 people, although in some cases it can reach 20. Within this group, there are journalists, known as 'poolers', for different media outlets: one for the written press, one for radio and others for television.

The details of the changes announced by the White House are yet to be defined and it is not known how they will be implemented.

This announcement comes in the context of Trump's confrontation with the US news agency, The Associated Press (AP), to which the Government restricted access to the 'pool', preventing it from asking questions to Trump, due to its decision to continue calling the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of Mexico, instead of adopting the nomenclature decided by the head of state, “Gulf of America”.

The AP filed a lawsuit in court, arguing that Trump's decision violates the right to freedom of the press enshrined in the First Amendment to the Constitution.

However, a judge ruled on Monday that the government could continue to block access to the news agency, although he asked it to reconsider its decision.

The White House announced new rules for the media today, now deciding which journalists can ask questions to US President Donald Trump, a task that until now was exclusively the responsibility of the White House Correspondents' Association (WHCA).

White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt announced at a press conference that, from now on, it will be the executive branch that selects the members of the small group of journalists, photographers and camera operators who accompany the presidents of the States at their events and transmit the information to thousands of other interested journalists.

“From now on, the White House press corps will determine who is in the press pool,” Karoline Leavitt said.

For almost a century, the tradition at the White House has been for a 'pool' of journalists to cover the President's agenda, since there is not enough space for the hundreds of journalists who want to follow his events in the Oval Office, in other rooms where he speaks or even on the presidential plane Air Force One.

The selection of journalists with access to this pool has traditionally been the responsibility of the White House Correspondents Association (WHCA), founded in 1914 by journalists in response to an unfounded rumor that a congressional committee wanted to decide which reporters could attend the press conferences of then President Woodrow Wilson (1913-1921).

The WHCA's work has been to advocate for greater access for the hundreds of journalists who cover the White House, in the face of attempts by various governments to restrict it.

In addition, it selects, through a rigorous process, the members of the 'pool' who are authorized to attend presidential events and who act as the eyes and ears of the other journalists.

The group of journalists accompanying the President is normally made up of 13 to 14 people, although in some cases it can reach 20. Within this group, there are journalists, known as 'poolers', for different media outlets: one for the written press, one for radio and others for television.

The details of the changes announced by the White House are yet to be defined and it is not known how they will be implemented.

This announcement comes in the context of Trump's confrontation with the US news agency, The Associated Press (AP), to which the Government restricted access to the 'pool', preventing it from asking questions to Trump, due to its decision to continue calling the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of Mexico, instead of adopting the nomenclature decided by the head of state, “Gulf of America”.

The AP filed a lawsuit in court, arguing that Trump's decision violates the right to freedom of the press enshrined in the First Amendment to the Constitution.

However, a judge ruled on Monday that the government could continue to block access to the news agency, although he asked it to reconsider its decision.