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Judge extends block on White House ban of CNN, MS NOW and Politico

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Coverage spectrum

Covered by 9 outlets across the spectrum.

12 articles in total. The spectrum counts each outlet once and leaves opinion out. How we measure bias

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A federal judge on Thursday extended a temporary order requiring the White House to restore access for CNN, MS NOW and Politico while their lawsuit continues. Trump barred reporters from the three outlets in September and said their coverage was ‘fake news’. Judge Timothy Kelly said he would decide by Tuesday whether to grant a longer-term injunction. The Justice Department argues the ban rests on national security concerns. At the hearing, Kelly questioned that justification. The outlets’ lawyers argue the ban is unlawful viewpoint discrimination under the First Amendment.

Headline and summary written by Mantle’s AI from the coverage below, under published rules. How this works

What happened

Key points

Each point shows who reports it, from Far Left to Far Right.

  1. Judge Timothy Kelly extended a temporary order requiring the White House to restore press access for CNN, MS NOW and Politico while the case continues.

    Reported byLeft4Center2Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian, Business Insider, The New York Times, CBS News
    Center
    The Hill, PBS NewsHour
    Right
    Washington Examiner

  2. Kelly said he would decide by Tuesday whether to grant a longer-term preliminary injunction.

    Reported byLeft2Right2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Guardian, The New York Times
    Right
    The Washington Times, Washington Examiner

  3. Trump barred reporters from the three outlets in September, saying their coverage was ‘fake news’.

    Reported byLeft1Center1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    CBS News
    Center
    The Hill
    Right
    Washington Examiner

  4. The Justice Department says the ban is based on national security concerns.

    Reported byLeft2Center1Right2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    The Independent, Business Insider
    Center
    The Hill
    Right
    The Washington Times, Washington Examiner

  5. Kelly questioned the government’s national security justification for the ban, calling its defense an uphill climb.

    Reported byLeft1Right1See the outletsHide the outlets
    Left
    Business Insider
    Right
    Washington Examiner

  6. The outlets’ lawyers argue the ban is unlawful viewpoint discrimination under the First Amendment.

    One side only: the rightReported byRight2See the outletsHide the outlets
    Right
    The Washington Times, Washington Examiner

What is contested

Where accounts differ

Points the coverage does not agree on, and who says what.

  • The White House ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico was based on national security concerns.

    The Justice Department says national security grounds justify the ban. The outlets’ lawyers and, according to Business Insider, Judge Kelly point to Trump’s own statements that he acted over critical coverage, and Kelly called the government’s national security defense an uphill climb.

  • The outlets had notice of the ban before it was imposed.

    Justice Department lawyer Michael Velchik said CNN “has been on notice for years”. The outlets say the ban came without notice or a chance to respond, and according to Business Insider, Kelly’s original ruling found the ban likely violated due process for that reason.

How each side tells it

Compare views

  • the left

    5 outlets

    Left headlines mostly report the extension in procedural terms, while the Independent and Guardian lead with Trump’s own statements about critical coverage, the mirror image of the right’s focus on legal claims.

    Judge extends temporary block on Trump's media ban of CNN, MS NOW, Politico
    CBS NewsLeftAll left-leaning headlines

  • the center

    2 outlets

    The Hill and PBS report the extension in neutral terms, with The Hill leading with Trump’s ‘fake news’ accusation and PBS folding the ruling into a news wrap, and neither headline takes a position on the national security rationale.

    News Wrap: Judge extends White House access for news outlets
    PBS NewsHourCenterAll center headlines

  • the right

    2 outlets

    Washington Examiner and Washington Times headlines focus on the restraining order and the lawyers’ legal arguments, and the Times calls Trump’s action a ‘banishment’ in its description, a word the left and center do not use.

    Federal judge extends order halting White House press ban while considering long-term ruling
    Washington ExaminerRightAll right-leaning headlines

The words they chose

Language to notice

Words that carry a judgement beyond the facts. Tap a highlighted word anywhere on the page to see why.

  • Left1

    led a crusade against CNN

  • Center0

    No loaded words in its own voice.

  • Right1

    banishment

In the outlets’ own words

  • Loaded verb

    led a crusade against CNNMore neutral: has long criticized CNN

    Describing Trump’s past criticism of CNN as a crusade adds a judgement about his motive that the reporting does not establish.

    …with MSNOW and Politico, “has been on notice for years.” Trump has long led a crusade against CNN as a bastion of “fake news,” a term that should have served as a signal to…

    Used byThe Independent (Left)

  • Sensational language

    banishmentMore neutral: ban

    The noun adds drama to a court ban on three outlets, where a neutral term describes the same action.

    …he'll decide by Tuesday whether to issue a long-term pause on President Trump's banishment of three news outlets that he claims pose a national security risk.

    Used byThe Washington Times (Right)

Words quoted from someone else (1)Hide the quoted words

Loaded words that outlets reported someone else saying. They show what was said, not how the outlet chose to say it.

  • Delegitimizing label

    Quoted

    fake newsMore neutral: inaccurate report or say what is false and how you know

    Dismisses reporting wholesale; a false claim should be identified specifically.

    …President Trump said should not be allowed to cover him over what he has called "fake news" that puts national security in danger.

    Quoted byThe Hill (Center)The Independent (Left)Washington Examiner (Right)

    Inside a quotation: the outlets are reporting someone else’s words.

See the full language guide

See for yourself

Side by side

What each side leads with and what it leaves out. Open a side to read its headlines.

From the left

5 outlets

Leads with

  • Trump’s own statements about critical coverage
  • Kelly’s skepticism of the national security rationale
  • The outlets’ continued access to White House news
See the 5 headlines from the leftHide the headlines
  • CBS NewsLeft

    Judge extends temporary block on Trump's media ban of CNN, MS NOW, Politico

    A judge has extended a temporary block on Trump's media ban on CNN, MS NOW and Politico. CBS News' legal correspondent Jessica Levinson has more.

    Read at CBS News (opens in a new tab)
    1 more from CBS News
  • The New York TimesLeft

    Judge Extends Pause on Trump’s Ban Against CNN, MS NOW and Politico

    The judge overseeing the case said that the pause would extend until next week, and promised to decide whether to further extend it by Tuesday.

    Read at The New York Times (opens in a new tab)
  • Business InsiderLeft

    Judge seems poised to reinforce block of Trump's White House media ban

    "That's an uphill climb," US District Judge Timothy Kelly said of the Justice Department's effort to defend the ban on national security grounds.

    Read at Business Insider (opens in a new tab)
  • The GuardianLeft

    Trump made ‘clear’ that media ban was due to critical coverage, lawyer tells judge

    Lawyer for CNN, MS Now and Politico says Trump admitted he banned networks from White House over their coverage Donald Trump continues to be the strongest witness for the media companies arguing that they were unfairly barred from the White House at his direction, a lawyer …

    Read at The Guardian (opens in a new tab)
  • The IndependentLeft

    Trump put CNN ‘on notice’ years ago when he called it ‘Delegitimizing label“fake news”Dismisses reporting wholesale; a false claim should be identified specifically.More neutral: inaccurate report, say what is false and how you knowThis appears inside a quotation. The outlet is reporting someone else’s words.Disagree with this highlight?,’ DOJ tells judge

    The president can target ‘specific’ reporters and outlets at his ‘discretion,’ DOJ says during media ban legal battle

    Read at The Independent (opens in a new tab)

From the center

2 outlets

Leads with

  • The extension of the temporary block
  • Trump’s ‘fake news’ accusation
  • The national security justification

Leaves out

  • The outlets’ First Amendment and due process arguments

Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.

See the 2 headlines from the centerHide the headlines
  • PBS NewsHourCenter

    News Wrap: Judge extends White House access for news outlets

    In our news wrap Thursday, a federal judge extended White House access for three news outlets until a final ruling on President Trump's press ban is reached, the Trump administration is suspending Microsoft from a green card program, accusing the tech giant of abusing the system …

    Read at PBS NewsHour (opens in a new tab)
  • The HillCenter

    Judge extends temporary block on Trump’s media ban

    A federal judge on Thursday briefly extended an order lifting a ban implemented by the White House last month on three new outlets President Trump said should not be allowed to cover him over what he has called "Delegitimizing label“fake news”Dismisses reporting wholesale; a false claim should be identified specifically.More neutral: inaccurate report, say what is false and how you knowThis appears inside a quotation. The outlet is reporting someone else’s words.Disagree with this highlight?" that puts national security in danger. U.S. …

    Read at The Hill (opens in a new tab)

From the right

2 outlets

Leads with

  • The outlets’ First Amendment viewpoint discrimination claim
  • Kelly’s questioning of the national security rationale
  • Trump’s ‘fake news’ accusations

Leaves out

  • Kelly’s earlier finding that the ban likely violated due process

Reported by other sides, not found in this side’s coverage.

See the 2 headlines from the rightHide the headlines

Articles you open from here build My Mix, a private picture of how your reading spreads across the spectrum, kept on this device. What is My Mix?

The left is Far Left and Left together. The right is Right and Far Right together. Every outlet keeps its own five-point rating.

Who reported it when

How the coverage built up

  • Left

    First to report

    CBS News, Oct 8, 6:00 AM EDT

  • Center

    6 hr 41 min later

    Its first report, Oct 8, 12:40 PM EDT

  • Right

    7 hr 19 min later

    Its first report, Oct 8, 1:18 PM EDT

See the order the outlets reported inHide the order
  1. CBS NewsLeftOct 8, 6:00 AM EDT
  2. The HillCenterOct 8, 12:40 PM EDT
  3. The IndependentLeftOct 8, 12:41 PM EDT
  4. The Washington TimesRightOct 8, 1:18 PM EDT
  5. The GuardianLeftOct 8, 1:56 PM EDT
  6. Business InsiderLeftOct 8, 2:36 PM EDT
  7. The New York TimesLeftOct 8, 2:37 PM EDT
  8. Washington ExaminerRightOct 8, 3:11 PM EDT
  9. PBS NewsHourCenterOct 8, 6:45 PM EDT

Times are the ones the outlets published in their own feeds, in Eastern time. Opinion is left out.

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