White House excludes some media outlets from press briefing

WASHINGTON - Friday's White House press briefing, normally an on-camera affair open to all reporters with press credentials, was turned into an exclusive event for certain outlets hand-picked by the administration.

The action came after President Donald Trump on Friday described the media and what he terms “fake news” as “the enemy of the people.”

On the list were Trump-friendly outlets such as Breitbart News, the Washington Times and OANN, a conservative television network that employs former Trump campaign manager Corey Lewandowski as a commentator.

Off the list were some of Trump's favorite targets, including The New York Times and CNN. The Los Angeles Times was also excluded.

The off-camera briefing with Sean Spicer, the press secretary, was not solely for conservative outlets. Several mainstream reporters were also allowed in, as were pool representatives who transmit news events to a far larger group of reporters.

The Associated Press and Time magazine were also invited but declined to participate in solidarity with other news organizations that were denied entry.

The White House Correspondents' Association protested.