White House Says Its Team, Not Reporter Group, Will Determine Press Pool Access

Legacy media will be allowed in the pool, but the White House will keep rotating among the five major television networks and add previously denied outlets.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt speaks during a press briefing in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, on Feb. 25, 2025. Evan Vucci/AP Photo

The White House press team, rather than the White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA), will determine which media outlets get to participate in its press pool, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on Feb. 25.

“A select group of D.C.-based journalists should no longer have a monopoly over the privilege of press access at the White House. All journalists, outlets, and voices deserve a seat at this highly coveted table,” Leavitt told reporters during a Tuesday press briefing.