A statement regarding the exclusion of one of the news site’s reporters from an event at the Oval Office was issued by the Executive Editor of the news organization Associated Press.
An Associated Press (AP) reporter was denied admission to the White House for an event in the Oval Office on Tuesday afternoon, according to a recent story, because the news outlet refused to modify its phrasing addressing the Gulf of Mexico.
According to reports, President Donald Trump had directed that the body of water be renamed the “Gulf of America,” and the AP was requested to inform its readers of this change.
Normal access to the White House event was denied to the unidentified AP reporter. Later that day, another AP reporter was similarly prohibited from going to another function that took place in the Diplomatic Reception Room. The reporters involved have not been identified by the AP.
Following their refusal to comply with the Trump administration’s editorial directive, the AP has openly denounced the White House’s decision to exclude its reporters from the Oval Office event.
AP Executive Editor Julie Pace stressed the organization’s dedication to providing its global audience with reliable, nonpartisan journalism in a statement issued on Tuesday.
According to Pace, the White House warned AP that noncompliance with Trump’s executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America” will lead to limited access to State functions.
She said that the administration’s measures are a form of retribution for independent journalism and called the move disturbing.
Pace went on to say that limiting AP’s access because of editorial choices is against the First Amendment, which guarantees free speech and a free press, and infringes press freedom.
AP has chosen to continue using its previous name, the Gulf of Mexico, in their editorial operations rather than complying with the executive order to rename it. Nonetheless, they will acknowledge Trump’s new name while doing so.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt addressed the administration’s decision to bar AP employees from the Oval Office at a press conference.
When asked by a reporter who was in charge of the ban, Leavitt said, “Well, let me just put the record straight first. Being able to cover this White House is an honor. Being the press secretary for the White House is a privilege, and no one has the right to enter the Oval Office and question the US president; it is an invitation.
She went on: “We reserve the right to decide who gets to go into the Oval Office.” As soon as Leavitt finished speaking, dozens of reporters from various media platforms sprang up to answer.
The same reporter who first raised the issue of the ban said, “But, isn’t it retaliatory in nature is the argument because, there’s a reason the AP was barred, which they said was because they’re not using the phrase, ‘Gulf of America,’ they’re using ‘Gulf of Mexico,’ in line with their standards.”
She went on, “The point is, is this creating a precedent that the White House will take action against reporters who don’t use the language you guys think reporters should use? Furthermore, how is it consistent with the First Amendment pledge you said earlier?
Reiterating that she had been very clear that the Trump administration will hold media outlets accountable if they feel they are spreading misinformation, Leavitt refuted the reporter’s claims.
“It is a fact that the body of water off the coast of Louisiana is called the ‘Gulf of America,’ and I’m not sure why news outlets don’t want to call it that, but that is what it is,” said Leavitt.
According to her, “The secretary of interior has made that the official designation in the geographical identification name server, and Apple has recognized that, Google has recognized that, pretty much every other outlet in this room has recognized that […] and it’s very important to this administration that we get that right, not just for people here at home, but also for the rest of the world.”
Just more than a month after announcing his plan to do so, Trump issued the order to rename the area. Video footage taken by media channel ABC on January 7, 2025, documents the president’s press conference on the issue.
“We’re going to be announcing at a future date, pretty soon we’re going to change—because we do most of the work there and it’s ours—we’re going to be changing—sort of the opposite of Biden, where he’s closing everything up, essentially getting rid of 50 to 60 trillion dollars’ worth of assets—we’re gonna be changing the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the ‘Gulf of America,'” stated Trump.
Additionally, he mentioned that he thought the new name had a “beautiful ring,” saying, “That covers a lot of territory.” “The ‘Gulf of America,’ what a lovely name, and it’s fitting.”
As per a YouTube video that Fox 5 Atlanta released, weeks after he first considered changing the name, Trump proclaimed February 9 to be “Gulf of America Day.”
Trump nodded in agreement with two government officials as one of them affirmed the change’s legitimacy while they were seated comfortably on an aircraft circling the area. The official observed that in order to ensure that the declaration was adhered to, the parties concerned had previously contacted the relevant map providers.
In order to record the event for the media, Trump then proudly displayed the executive order he had signed. Behind him was a picture of a Gulf of Mexico map with the words “Gulf of America” scattered all over it.
“Actually, interestingly, I’ve never spoken to them about it,” Trump said in response to a speaker in the background who asked if he had discussed this move with Mexico. Since it was our call, I hadn’t talked to them about—I’ve talked to them about a lot of other stuff. To my slight astonishment, they have never mentioned it.