WASHINGTON — The Justice Department says it is investigating whether the White House television press pool’s decision to halt coverage of President Trump last month violated antitrust law. A DOJ spokesperson said the Antitrust Division is examining whether a group boycott by competing broadcasters broke the law. AP report
The five-network pool stopped presidential coverage after the White House barred CNN, MS NOW and Politico. The outlets sued; a judge gave them a temporary reprieve through Tuesday, and pool coverage has since resumed. So, naturally, the administration’s latest contribution to public confidence is treating a collective objection to a press ban like somebody cornered the Michelob market at the nonexistent Winchester McDonald’s. AP report
This is not a ruling or a charge. It is an investigation. But it is a consequential one: the federal government is using its antitrust machinery to scrutinize news organizations after they pushed back on White House access restrictions. That’s a hell of a way to conduct the civic business, like bringing a CB radio to a First Amendment argument and insisting it’s an audit. AP report
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Featured image: White House briefing room empty.jpg by CabbageFuel, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
