Trump launches Trump TV after major media outlets boycott his events

The administration of US President Donald Trump has launched its own news channel, Trump TV, as major American media outlets refuse to cover events involving the president in solidarity with journalists barred from the White House.

The platform began broadcasting with a video of a speech Trump delivered two months ago, The Washington Sun reports. Trump press secretary Kaelan Dorr described Trump TV as “a livestream of the Administration’s greatest hits, unfiltered,” saying it would feature excerpts that were not covered by major news outlets.

“The press, in some cases, reported inaccurately or not at all on the Administration’s many record breaking accomplishments on behalf of all Americans,” Dorr added.

Trump TV is streamed through the White House’s YouTube channel and is also available in the “live” section of the official White House app.

The launch comes after Trump barred journalists from CNN, MS NOW and Politico from accessing the White House on September 18, accusing the outlets of publishing what he described as fake news about his administration. The three organisations, in turn, accused Trump of violating the First Amendment to the US Constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech, and filed a lawsuit against his administration.

Other major media organisations subsequently joined the boycott of Trump’s official events. On September 21, when Trump opened a new helicopter landing pad on the White House’s South Lawn, ABC, CBS and NBC, as well as Fox News, decided not to send journalists or camera crews to cover the event.

As a result, footage of Trump’s speech distributed by the White House press office was broadcast without sound, since audio from such events is provided by members of the presidential press pool.

The New York Times and The Washington Post also joined the boycott, refusing to publish reports or footage from official events attended by Trump.

By Jeyhun Aghazada