The White House barred a journalist from the Associated Press from attending a press conference on Thursday involving President Donald Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, intensifying a conflict between the news agency and the administration regarding the naming of the Gulf of Mexico. This body of water was recently renamed by Trump to “Gulf of America,” a change that AP decided not to adopt in their reporting.
The rejection of the AP reporter effectively excluded a significant number of media organizations that depend on the Associated Press for coverage, creating a substantial gap in information dissemination. Julie Pace, who serves as the executive editor and senior vice president at the AP, expressed her dissatisfaction by stating that this incident represents a “deeply troubling escalation” and constitutes “a clear violation of the First Amendment” of the U.S. Constitution. She emphasized the need for the Trump administration to cease these practices and highlighted this as the third consecutive day that AP journalists faced restrictions on accessing presidential events. She described it as an egregious disservice to the millions that rely on the AP for unbiased news.
Support for the AP was echoed by Eugene Daniels, the president of the White House Correspondents’ Association, who criticized the White House for undermining press freedoms guaranteed by the Constitution. He argued that the administration is publicly admitting to limiting media access as a punitive measure against the AP for not adhering to the administration’s favored terminology, calling it an instance of viewpoint discrimination.
In response to inquiries about the restrictions, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt indicated that access decisions were under the president’s jurisdiction and implied that maintaining the designation “Gulf of Mexico” could be seen as spreading misinformation for which media outlets must be held accountable. “We reserve the right to decide who gets to go into the Oval Office,” she stated.
As for the White House’s additional restrictions, they did not offer immediate comments following the unprecedented decision to exclude a credentialed reporter from a conference attended by two prominent world leaders—a move that exceeds limitations previously placed on Oval Office access. Daniels described this action as a blatant violation not only of the First Amendment but also of an executive order on freedom of speech and preventing federal censorship issued by Trump himself.
The limitations on AP reporters began on Tuesday at Oval Office events, which then continued onto subsequent days and various locations. Upon taking office, Trump wasted no time in renaming significant landmarks, including reverting the mountain known as Denali back to its former name, Mt. McKinley, while also renaming the Gulf of Mexico to Gulf of America. The AP made a stylistic choice to adopt the new name for Mt. McKinley due to its complete location within U.S. territory, yet opted to retain the Gulf of Mexico because it extends beyond U.S. boundaries, although acknowledging Trump’s new naming.
This decision carries weight as the AP Stylebook is adhered to by a multitude of journalists and publications. In turn, both Google Maps and Apple Maps have partially or fully adopted the term Gulf of America, prompting Mexico’s president to consider legal action against Google regarding this terminology shift.
