CNN and MS Now barred from White House state dinner for Xi Jinping

Journalists from CNN and MS Now were denied entry to the White House state dinner held in honour of Chinese President Xi Jinping on Thursday, despite a federal judge’s order that the Trump administration must permit their attendance.

According to a CNN report, the White House informed the two outlets about an hour before Xi’s scheduled arrival that they could cover the event, but only with a photojournalist and an audio technician. The decision excluded the networks’ editorial teams, specifically a reporter and a producer, effectively preventing full news coverage.

The restriction follows a ban imposed by the administration last week, which the judge later ruled must be lifted. The latest move has sparked criticism from media organisations, who argue the limitation undermines press freedom and contravenes the court’s ruling.

Details about the dinner’s programme or the presence of other media outlets were not disclosed in the report.

Source: The Guardian. Photo: Castorly Stock / Pexels.