US President Donald Trump’s administration has launched a 24-hour streaming channel, “Trump TV”, after major American television networks suspended their shared coverage of presidential events amid a growing dispute over access to the White House.
The White House announced the launch on Monday, describing the platform as “TRUMP TV: The Essentials Station” and saying it would provide viewers with past presidential moments, major announcements and the latest content from the administration. The stream is available through the White House website and its official YouTube channel.
The development followed the decision by ABC, CBS, Fox News and NBC to suspend their participation in the White House television pool after CNN was prevented from carrying out its scheduled pool duties.
CNN, MS NOW and Politico had earlier sued the Trump administration after being barred from the White House grounds, arguing that the restrictions violated their constitutional rights. The administration has defended the ban, with Trump accusing the affected outlets of publishing what he calls “fake news”.
The television pool normally allows participating networks to rotate responsibility for recording and distributing footage of the President to broadcasters across the United States and other parts of the world. CNN was scheduled to handle the pool coverage on Monday but was prevented from doing so.
The other networks subsequently declined to provide a replacement, creating an unusual gap in shared television coverage of Trump’s official activities. The decision also affected coverage of the President’s inauguration of a new helipad at the White House on Monday.
Against that backdrop, the White House promoted its own video stream as an alternative source of footage.
“IT’S LIVE. Trump TV is Streaming Now. 24/7, updated in real time, with top past moments, announcements, and the latest and greatest from the administration all in one place,” the White House said in a post announcing the platform.
It added: “Not every big moment has made it on your tv, now it can.”
However, the first broadcast was not a live presidential event. It featured previously recorded footage, including Trump’s July 3 address at Mount Rushmore. The platform is designed to give the administration a direct channel for distributing footage of Trump and his activities without depending on traditional television networks.
The launch has therefore coincided with an increasingly contentious battle over access to the US presidency, with the three barred media organisations now pursuing legal action while the major television networks have suspended the shared pool arrangement that has traditionally provided coverage of presidential events.
