WASHINGTON — A federal judge handed CNN, MS NOW and Politico a win Tuesday, ruling that the Trump White House illegally barred their reporters from covering the administration and ordering the ban lifted while the underlying lawsuit plays out.

U.S. District Judge Timothy Kelly, a Trump appointee, found the three outlets were likely to succeed on claims that the access restrictions violated their due process and First Amendment rights, calling the administration's actions "unlawful viewpoint discrimination," according to court filings reviewed by NPR. The ruling extends and strengthens an earlier temporary order that had been set to expire on a short clock.

The injunction restores general building and briefing-room access for 78 reporters across the three outlets, per the ruling cited in CNBC's coverage of the decision. It is a partial victory, though: the order does not force the administration to grant those outlets' reporters access to the Oval Office or Air Force One, spaces the White House has argued fall under different access rules.

"UNLAWFUL VIEWPOINT DISCRIMINATION" — U.S. DISTRICT JUDGE TIMOTHY KELLY

Built on a 2025 Precedent

Kelly's ruling leaned on a 2025 case brought by the Associated Press, in which Judge Trevor McFadden found the government could not selectively exclude an outlet from White House access once it had opened that access to others, based on the content of that outlet's coverage. CNN, MS NOW and Politico had each argued their exclusions followed a similar pattern of retaliation for unfavorable coverage.

MS NOW is the network formerly known as MSNBC, which took on its new name and ownership structure after Comcast spun the cable channel off from NBCUniversal. The rebranded outlet joined CNN and Politico in suing over the access restrictions imposed earlier this year.

President Trump said on Truth Social that he intends to appeal the ruling, arguing the White House should have discretion over who it grants special access to on its own property.

Press freedom advocates have watched the case closely as a test of whether a presidential administration can use physical access to the White House as a tool to punish outlets over unfavorable coverage, rather than for legitimate security or space reasons. Tuesday's ruling is the second time in roughly a year that a federal judge has sided with news organizations challenging the administration's access decisions, following the AP's win last year.

What's Next

The three outlets' reporters are expected to resume general access to White House grounds and the briefing room this week, while the broader lawsuit over the scope of their access — including to the Oval Office and presidential travel — continues in federal court.