AP says White House blocked reporter over Gulf of America policy

• The White House allegedly blocked an Associated Press reporter from an event at the White House on Tuesday, Feb. 11. The newswire service claimed the reporter was denied access over the AP style policy on the use of “Gulf of America.”
• The Associated Press did not identify the reporter who was denied entry to the event.
• Before President Donald Trump ordered the change of the body of water’s name, it was the “Gulf of Mexico” in the U.S.

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The White House allegedly blocked an Associated Press reporter from an event at the Oval Office on Tuesday, Feb. 11, over the news agency’s style policy on using “Gulf of America.” Before President Donald Trump’s order changed the body of water’s name, it was the “Gulf of Mexico” in the U.S. 

The Associated Press released a statement on Tuesday evening, saying it informs billions of people worldwide through factual, nonpartisan journalism.

“Today we were informed by the White House that if AP did not align its editorial standards with President Donald Trump’s executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America, AP would be barred from accessing an event in the Oval Office. This afternoon AP’s reporter was blocked from attending an executive order signing.”

• The Associated Press

White House Communications Director Steven Cheung responded to the statement, posting to X a GIF of a tiny violin with a caption, saying, “Poor thing.” 

The news agency said Trump’s decision was “alarming” and that the administration was punishing them for independent journalism. 

“Limiting our access to the Oval Office based on the content of AP’s speech not only severely impedes the public’s access to independent news, it plainly violates the First Amendment,” the AP statement concluded.

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, a nonprofit organization that goes by FIRE, said news of the Trump Administration barring AP reporters over the issue was “an alarming attack on press freedom.” 

“President Trump has the authority to change how the U.S. government refers to the Gulf. But he cannot punish a news organization for using another term,” it said.

The Associated Press recently faced criticism when allegations arose that the news agency had purchased photos of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre in Israel from photojournalists with alleged links to the terrorist organization Hamas.

The news agency later faced a lawsuit in Florida from people affected by the terrorist attack, claiming they knowingly supported a terrorist organization. However, AP claimed those allegations were unfounded.

The Associated Press was recently re-labeled “left-leaning” by news rating service All Sides last November.