Updated May 8, 2025 at 3:40 PM CDT
Freedom of the press is "no longer a given in the United States," according to the Committee to Protect Journalists.
The nonprofit organization, which promotes press freedom around the world, released a report titled "Alarm bells: Trump's first 100 days ramp up fear for the press, democracy" in late April, in which it outlines concerns about the White House's actions related to press freedom.
CPJ normally waits about a year into any new presidential administration to evaluate its impact on the free press, but it decided to act sooner this time.
Katherine Jacobson, lead author of the report and CPJ's program coordinator for U.S., Canada and the Caribbean, told Morning Edition that President Trump's "flurry of executive actions" in his first 100 days in office "have created a real chilling effect and have the potential to curtail media freedoms."
The report points to access issues, like Trump barring the Associated Press from White House pool events for refusing to use the Gulf of America and,the FCC's investigation into outlets like NBC, ABC, CBS, as well as NPR.
"All of these actions kind of taken individually might seem like a one-off case, but when put together [they] paint a really alarming picture of deteriorating media freedom in the U.S.," Jacobsen said.
White House Deputy Press Secretary Anna Kelly said in an emailed statement that "There is no greater defender of freedom than President Trump, who signed an Executive Order to protect free speech on his first day back in office, ended the weaponization of justice, restored over 400 press passes to the White House complex, and takes media questions daily."
In 2023, former President Joe Biden's administration changed the rules for hard passes that allow journalists regularly covering the White House access to the grounds. Biden required those holding hard passes to have covered the White House recently and follow certain behavior criteria while working and cited security concerns about unused passes.
Politico reported that during the first three months of the rules being in place, the number of pass holders fell by 442, and that just one applicant during that time was denied a pass.
Actions in D.C. can trickle down to the local level
Jacobsen said the Trump administration's actions may feel like "insider baseball in D.C.," but they are "creating a permission structure for local leaders to behave this way, both in the United States and then globally as well."
As CPJ's report notes, many local news outlets rely on the Associated Press' reporting for national and international news, so limiting its access to the White House potentially limited local readers by extension.
"That has real impact on journalists' ability to do their work and also ability for the American public more broadly to have an understanding of what's happening in those rooms that organizations are excluded from," Jacobsen said.
What Trump's focus on NPR and other broadcasters signals
CPJ's report points to the FCC's investigation into NPR and PBS underwriting practices. FCC Chair Brendan Carr told the CEO's of both outlets in a January letter that he was "concerned" the two are violating federal laws by "airing commercials." Each CEO said their organization's underwriting complies with FCC rules.
The report warns that President Trump's call to strip NPR and PBS of federal funding threatens millions of Americans' ability to get news, and that investigations into CBS, NBC and ABC are creating concern in those newsrooms that they could face retribution.
Jacobsen said it's difficult to say what the administration is trying to accomplish with these actions, but that "in effect, what's happening is that it's creating a less free media environment and creating a chilling effect."
She added that the impact of the Trump administration's actions could be felt for decades.
"It's kind of the intangible of slowing down the process of reporting and scaring off news outlets from covering stories that the administration perhaps might not want to be covered," Jacobsen said.
CPJ's advice to journalists: keep doing your job.
The report advises journalists to conduct risk assessments and follow guidance CPJ and other journalism organizations offer for safety practices while reporting or traveling abroad for work.
It also encourages media executives to ensure staff and freelancers have access to safety protocol training, secure devices, insurance and legal aid.
Jacobsen said journalists should know they have support, and added that it is important for the U.S. public to understand the watchdog role journalists play in their communities.
"What reporters do is really hold power to account," Jacobsen said. "And without a robust and free press, it's very difficult to have that accountability."
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