Dispute over access to the Oval Office: White House wins lawsuit against AP

The AP news agency was initially successful in its lawsuit against being barred from the Oval Office in the White House. An appeals court now sees things differently, stating that the US president has discretion over which journalists he allows into his private offices. The ruling is not yet final.

The Associated Press (AP) news agency has suffered a legal defeat in its dispute with US President Donald Trump. A US federal appeals court ruled that the White House could continue to exclude the news agency from certain Trump appointments. The court thus overturned a court order from April. A judge had ordered the White House about two months ago to grant AP access to the president's appointments again.

The White House had banned the internationally active US news agency because it refused to rename the Gulf of Mexico to the "Gulf of America," in accordance with the name change ordered by Trump. The renowned news agency was banned from appointments in Trump's White House office – the famous Oval Office – and from traveling on the presidential aircraft, Air Force One. Federal judge Trevor McFadden ruled in April that these measures violated the First Amendment to the US Constitution. The First Amendment guarantees freedom of speech and freedom of the press. If the government opens its doors to some journalists, it "cannot close those doors to other journalists because of their attitudes," the judge ruled.

The White House appealed this decision – and now achieved success. The federal appeals court in Washington ruled that certain restricted rooms used by the US president are not "First Amendment forums." "The White House therefore has discretion to decide, including based on viewpoint, which journalists are admitted." Denying the White House this right would also "limit the president's independence and control over his private workspace," the appeals court's decision states. This is not yet the final verdict in the dispute.

Exclusion after name dispute to the Gulf of Mexico

The conflict between AP and Trump arose because the agency refused to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the "Gulf of America" ​​and to change its editorial policy accordingly. AP points out that the ocean area has been called the "Gulf of Mexico" for more than 400 years.

The agency also emphasized in its editorial language regulations that, as a news provider for clients around the world, it must use geographical names that are understandable to all subscribers of its services. Trump's name change of the Gulf applies only to the United States; Mexico and other countries are not required to follow suit. Immediately after taking office in January, Trump signed an executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the "Gulf of America."

AP is the largest news agency in the United States and one of the largest in the world. Its language code has been standard reading in other newsrooms and corporate offices in the United States for years. The banishment of AP is part of a campaign against much of the established media that Trump has been waging for years and has intensified since his return to the White House. For example, the White House withdrew the right of the White House Accredited Correspondents Association (WHCA) to independently decide on the composition of the so-called pool, the group of journalists who report on the president from close quarters—that is, the Oval Office or Air Force One.