A government or official bars a reporter or a news organisation from places or events where news is gathered: briefings, government buildings, press pools, official trips or court hearings. The ban may be announced, or made by refusing entry without notice. It does not stop publication, but it cuts reporters off from officials and from events that other outlets can still cover.
The earliest incident in the record using this tactic is dated 19 September 1955.
The ladder for access bans: where this tactic has led, stage by stage
The number of entries reflects the depth of this record, not the severity of a country's conduct.
Incidents by country and year
Belarus, RSF 2026 rank: 165th of 180
Canada, RSF 2026 rank: 20th of 180
China, RSF 2026 rank: 178th of 180
Hungary, RSF 2026 rank: 74th of 180
Israel, RSF 2026 rank: 116th of 180
Philippines, RSF 2026 rank: 114th of 180
Russia, RSF 2026 rank: 172nd of 180
South Africa, RSF 2026 rank: 21st of 180
Tanzania, RSF 2026 rank: 117th of 180
United States, RSF 2026 rank: 64th of 180
| Date | Incident | Stage | Head of government | Outcome |
|---|
| 19 September 1955 | United States: Tallahatchie County, Mississippi sheriff segregates Black reporters at the Emmett Till murder trial, September 1955 | Restrict | Hugh L. White | Sustained |
| 24 September 1962 | United States: Texas judge allows televised pretrial hearing in the Billie Sol Estes case; Supreme Court later limits cameras in criminal courtrooms | Restrict | Price Daniel | Reversed (7 June 1965) |
| 25 October 1983 | United States military bars journalists from the invasion of Grenada | Restrict | Ronald Reagan | Reversed (1 April 1985) |
| 20 December 1989 | United States: Pentagon press pool kept from the opening hours of the Panama invasion, December 1989 | Restrict | George H. W. Bush | Ongoing (6 April 1990) |
| 17 January 1991 | United States military restricts reporters to escorted press pools during the Gulf War | Restrict | George H. W. Bush | Sustained (28 February 1991) |
| 10 February 2003 | Pentagon sets ground rules for journalists embedded with United States forces in Iraq | Restrict | George W. Bush | Sustained (14 April 2003) |
| 7 November 2018 | White House revokes CNN correspondent Jim Acosta's press credential after a news conference exchange with President Trump | Restrict | Donald Trump | Reversed (19 November 2018) |
| 7 November 2018 | United States: White House suspension of CNN correspondent Jim Acosta's hard pass, November 2018 | Restrict | Donald Trump | Reversed (19 November 2018) |
| 29 May 2020 | Minnesota State Patrol arrests CNN crew live on air in Minneapolis | Punish | Tim Walz | Reversed (29 May 2020) |
| 23 July 2020 | Federal officers restrict press access to Portland protests; judge orders them to stop | Punish | Donald Trump | Reversed (23 July 2020) |
| 21 July 2023 | Federal court strikes down Arizona's law banning recording police within 8 feet | Restrict | Doug Ducey | Reversed (21 July 2023) |
| 24 May 2024 | United States (Louisiana): 25-foot buffer zone law around police officers, May 2024 | Restrict | Jeff Landry | Ongoing (31 January 2025) |
| 1 January 2025 | United States (Florida): Halo Law buffer zone around first responders, January 2025 | Restrict | Ron DeSantis | Sustained (1 January 2025) |
| 31 January 2025 | United States (Louisiana): Federal court order blocking enforcement of the police buffer zone law, January 2025 | Restrict | Jeff Landry | Ongoing (31 January 2025) |
| 6 February 2025 | Border czar Tom Homan says ICE media ride-alongs may end over leaks | Restrict | Donald Trump | Unknown |
| 11 February 2025 | United States: White House exclusion of the Associated Press from the Oval Office and Air Force One, February 2025 | Restrict | Donald Trump | Ongoing (22 July 2025) |
| 25 February 2025 | United States: White House takes over selection of the presidential press pool, February 2025 | Restrict | Donald Trump | Sustained (22 September 2026) |
| 15 April 2025 | White House ends wire services' guaranteed seat in the press pool | Restrict | Donald Trump | Sustained |
| 19 September 2025 | United States: Department of Defense press credential rules requiring approval before release of information, September 2025 | Restrict | Donald Trump | Ongoing (9 April 2026) |
| 15 October 2025 | United States: News organizations turn in their Pentagon press credentials, October 2025 | Restrict | Donald Trump | Ongoing (9 April 2026) |
| 31 October 2025 | White House closes 'Upper Press' section of West Wing to reporters | Restrict | Donald Trump | Sustained |
| 18 September 2026 | CNN, MS NOW, Politico hard passes deactivated, 2026 | Restrict | Donald Trump | Ongoing (21 September 2026) |
The ladder for this tactic · Filter these incidents
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