In Solidarity with Afaaq News.. Television Networks Refuse to Send Joint Coverage Crew for Trump

- Major television networks announced on Monday their solidarity with the Afaq News network and rejected the assignment of a replacement filming crew to carry out joint coverage tasks, after U.S. President Donald Trump barred the network from covering White House news. Brian Bouton, the Washington bureau chief for Fox News and the current president of the joint coverage group, wrote in an email to the other members of the group: "I would like to inform you that, effective today, the joint television coverage group will not cover events designated for this type of collective coverage of presidential activities."

Bouton added: "This decision comes in response to the White House's position of preventing Afaq News from performing its assigned duties within this group," noting that "no alternative group will be formed to take on this task." Bouton clarified that the rest of the joint television coverage activities "will continue as usual, including coverage of congressional news, major personalities, and selected events in Washington and across the country."

The three American news media outlets that Trump barred from entering the White House, namely Afaq News, MS NOW, and Politico, have filed a lawsuit to regain access to the White House. The urgent request is set to be presented to a federal judge in the District Court in Washington, D.C., which could lead to hearings and legal arguments from the administration as early as this week.

This dispute is one of the most significant attacks the administration has launched against the press so far, with implications that extend far beyond the three news organizations included in the ban. Trump stated on Friday, when announcing the ban, that he might add other organizations to the list. Reporters from Afaq News, MS NOW, and Politico are unable to access their workplaces inside the White House.

Reporters from Afaq News and MS NOW have also been barred from using their television equipment and camera locations. Afaq News was excluded on Monday from the joint media coverage tasks undertaken by major news organizations, as the network was scheduled to take responsibility for the joint television coverage and accompany the president on his trip to New York that day.