WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump said Friday that the White House would bar journalists from POLITICO, CNN and MS NOW, escalating his long-running conflict with news organizations that have criticized or challenged his administration. Trump made the announcement in a post on Truth Social, saying the outlets should not be allowed to report what he called “fiction and lies” about the president, his administration or the United States. He described the decision as the result of what he called “constant” fake-news coverage. Asked about the move in the Oval Office, Trump offered little additional explanation, saying it was based on “cumulative stories.” He did not outline how the restrictions would work or when they would take effect. POLITICO said it would continue covering the administration and future presidents and would defend its First Amendment rights. CNN said it stood behind its White House reporting team and called any ban an unconstitutional interference with the press. MS NOW did not immediately comment. Jacqui Heinrich, president of the White House Correspondents’ Association and a Fox News correspondent, said Trump had characterized his own proposed action as a “ban on the free press.” She said constitutional protections for journalists do not depend on whether a president approves of a news organization’s reporting, questions or editorial judgments. The threat follows several earlier disputes over White House access during Trump’s second term. In 2025, the administration blocked Associated Press reporters from the Oval Office and Air Force One after the news organization declined to adopt the administration’s preferred name, “Gulf of America,” for the Gulf of Mexico. The Associated Press sued to restore its access. The White House also restricted reporters’ access to a West Wing office used by communications staff and took control of the presidential press pool rotation, a process traditionally managed by the White House Correspondents’ Association. Trump also revived a claim that the federal government provided POLITICO with roughly $8 million to keep the company operating. POLITICO said that allegation is false and has been repeatedly debunked. The claim surfaced previously as the administration canceled subscriptions to the company’s POLITICO Pro policy service. The president’s proposed restrictions raise broader concerns about whether the executive branch may exclude news organizations because of their coverage. While the White House controls access to some spaces and events for security and logistical reasons, press-freedom advocates have argued that selectively punishing outlets over their reporting threatens the public’s ability to scrutinize government officials.