FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
New York, Sept. 21, 2026 — A coalition of over 100 leading journalists, rights organizations, academics, and advocates sent a letter today demanding that Paramount Skydance CEO David Ellison publicly condemn President Donald Trump’s unconstitutional ban on CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House, and commit to fully backing litigation to stop the ban should his company come to own CNN. Paramount reportedly reached a settlement today to resolve antitrust claims by state attorneys general that had held up its acquisition of CNN’s parent, Warner Bros. Discovery. The deal reportedly includes a commitment to install an independent editorial board for CNN.
The following can be attributed to Seth Stern, chief of advocacy at Freedom of the Press Foundation (FPF), one of the signatories:
“If Ellison really believes in independent journalism, as he recently claimed in a New York Times op-ed, he must be outraged that Trump has banned from the White House the journalists he seeks to employ. He needs to say so, loudly and clearly, and commit to backing any legal action necessary to uphold CNN’s rights should he come to own it.
“Ellison’s past actions, from trading away CBS News’ independence to throwing dinner parties for Trump and his censorial hangers-on, have convinced many that he’s all talk when it comes to press freedom. Can he instantly rebuild that broken trust by finally standing up for the First Amendment only now, after such an extreme and outrageous action by Trump? Of course not. But if he doesn’t, then there can be no doubt that he is, and always will be, an enemy of the free press, just like his buddy in the White House. No purportedly independent editorial board can fix that.”
On Saturday, journalists from CNN, MS NOW, and Politico were refused entry to the White House grounds and had their press passes confiscated. On Monday, CNN was removed from the presidential TV pool. All three outlets have sued to stop the ban.
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