White House bars news organisations including BBC and CNN from press briefing

On the attack: Press Secretary Sean Spicer
REUTERS
Saphora Smith25 February 2017

The White House has barred several major news organisations, including UK publications, from attending a press briefing.

The BBC, CNN and The Daily Mail were among those barred from attending the daily briefing with Donald Trump’s press secretary Sean Spicer.

The New York Times and Buzzfeed - of which Mr Trump has been very critical - were also blocked from the Friday meeting in a move that has angered supporters of a free press.

It came after the US president gave a speech attacking the media as “fake news” and the “enemy of the people”.

Shortly after his speech on Friday a select group of media organisations were invited into Mr Spicer's office for an informal meeting.

Those invited into the room included ABC, Fox News, Breitbart News and the Washington Times.

The Associated Press, USA Today and Time magazine refused to attend the meeting in protest.

Mr Trump has previously been publicly critical of the BBC, twice sarcastically describing the broadcaster as "another beauty".

The BBC has sought clarification from the White House on why its representative was denied access.

The broadcaster's Americas bureaux editor Paul Danahar added: "Our reporting will remain fair and impartial regardless."

Dean Baquet, the executive editor of the New York Times, said it was the first time in the paper's history it had been barred from a briefing.

Defending its decision The White House said it had invited a pool of news organisations that shares its work with other press and said it felt "everyone was represented".

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