Did Obama ban Fox News from White House briefings? Claim distorts the facts

    <div class="rating_wrapper">
        <span class="wrapper_title">Rating:</span>
        <a id="main_rating" class="rating_link_wrapper" href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/rating/mostly_false">
            <div class="rating_img_wrap">
                <img class="lazy-image" src="https://mediaproxy.snopes.com/width/200/https://media.snopes.com/2018/03/rating-mostly-false.png" alt="Mostly False"/>
            </div>
        </a>
    </div>

    <div id="outer_fact_context" class="outer_fact_check_context">
        <div class="fact_check_info_wrapper">
            <span class="fact_check_info_title">What's True</span>
            <p class="fact_check_info_description">Obama frequently criticized Fox News, granted the network fewer interviews, and fielded fewer questions from its reporters relative to other media outlets. His administration also acknowledged a willingness to leave Fox News out of certain interviews. Although some accused the administration of blocking access on one specific occasion, officials later attributed the incident to a communication error and reversed course.</p>
        </div>

        <div class="fact_check_info_wrapper">
            <span class="fact_check_info_title">What's False</span>
            <p class="fact_check_info_description">At no point did the Obama administration completely block, ban, or remove Fox News journalists from press briefings.</p>
        </div>
    </div>
</section>

<input type="hidden" id="article_url" value="/fact-check/obama-ban-fox-news-white-house/"/>

<p dir="ltr">In September 2026, U.S. President Donald Trump <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2026/09/21/politics/cnn-politico-msnow-sue-white-house-access">restricted</a> three prominent news organizations—CNN, MSNOW, and Politico—from entering the White House. The affected outlets responded by filing a lawsuit alleging a violation of First Amendment rights.</p>

<p dir="ltr">Shortly afterward, former President Barack Obama <a href="https://www.the-independent.com/bulletin/news/obama-trump-white-house-cnn-ms-now-press-ban-b3053194.html">spoke out against the restrictions</a> and <a href="https://nypost.com/2026/09/20/us-news/obama-glosses-over-his-own-attempt-to-block-media-from-white-house-as-he-slams-trump/">pondered</a> what might have happened had he similarly barred Fox News during his tenure. This prompted social media users to argue that <a href="https://www.facebook.com/reel/2099274724128535">Obama had targeted Fox News</a> in a comparable fashion during his initial term. For instance, media personality <a href="https://x.com/piersmorgan/status/2101685191093649487">Piers Morgan posted</a> on X, stating, "Obama did ban Fox, and waged almost constant war against press freedom."</p>

<img class="img-lg" src="https://mediaproxy.snopes.com/width/600?url=https://media.snopes.com/2026/09/piers_morgan.png" alt=""/>
<p><strong>(X user @PiersMorgan)</strong></p>

<p dir="ltr">As <a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/obama-block-fox-news-reporters/">previously documented</a>, while Obama often voiced disapproval of Fox News and turned down interview requests from the network, he never enacted a blanket ban on the organization at the White House. Consequently, the claim is rated as mostly false.</p>

<p dir="ltr">In October 2009, an article by <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/23/us/politics/23fox.html">The New York Times</a> reported that the Treasury Department under Obama sought to omit Fox News from a group interview featuring executive-pay official Kenneth R. Feinberg, an event where networks shared a single camera crew. Competing networks reportedly objected to the attempt to exclude Fox.</p>

<p dir="ltr">However, a subsequent <a href="https://talkingpointsmemo.com/dc/wh-we-re-happy-to-exclude-fox-but-didn-t-yesterday-with-feinberg-interview">Talking Points Memo</a> investigation characterized the event as a misunderstanding, explaining:</p>

<blockquote>
    <p dir="ltr">Feinberg conducted a notepad briefing with reporters regarding executive compensation cuts. Television correspondents requested on-camera follow-ups, prompting Treasury officials to compile a list of interested networks (which initially omitted Fox).</p>
    <p dir="ltr">Due to logistical challenges in setting up multiple cameras quickly, officials arranged a rotating pool setup using a single camera. When the network pool crew noticed Fox was missing from the list and was told they hadn't requested access, the crew insisted Fox be included. Treasury consulted top Obama adviser Anita Dunn, who approved the request, allowing Fox's Major Garrett to participate in the interview.</p>
</blockquote>

<p dir="ltr">A Treasury representative told the publication that there was no deliberate plot to shut out Fox News, noting that the network received the exact same interview opportunity as its rivals and calling the incident much ado about nothing. Fox News ultimately conducted the interview with Feinberg.</p>

<p dir="ltr">Even so, the administration did not shy away from <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/politics/administration-loses-bid-to-exclude-fox-news-from-pay-czar-interview">criticizing Fox News</a> following the dispute. Asked by NBC News about the White House's posture toward the network, Obama remarked:</p>

<blockquote>
    <p dir="ltr">We're going to take the media as it comes. And if media is operating basically as a talk radio format, then that's one thing, and if it's operating as a news outlet, then that's another. But it's not something I'm losing a lot of sleep over.</p>
</blockquote>

<p dir="ltr">According to reports, Obama aide Josh Earnest acknowledged the White House's theoretical openness to excluding Fox News from certain interviews, though he noted it had not ultimately happened, adding that administration officials had engaged with Fox in the past and would continue to do so.</p>

<p dir="ltr">In a 2010 <a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/obama-in-command-the-rolling-stone-interview-188620/">Rolling Stone</a> discussion, Obama criticized the network for prioritizing editorial perspectives over neutral reporting, calling it a viewpoint that is ultimately damaging to the long-term health of a competitive, middle-class nation.</p>

<p dir="ltr"><a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/obama-block-fox-news-reporters/">As previously noted</a>, former Fox News White House correspondent Major Garrett stated that while he was never barred from the briefing room, persistent friction between the administration and his employer complicated his reporting duties. In a <a href="https://thehill.com/hilltv/rising/417100-it-should-be-noted-obama-white-house-demonized-fox-news-on-daily-basis-says-cbs/">November 2018 interview with The Hill</a>, he observed:</p>

<blockquote>
    <p dir="ltr">The White House would always pull me aside and say "well, really, Major, we're not at war with you," and I said "stop talking to me like that because when you're at war with my network you by definition are questioning and assailing my journalistic credibility and the work I do here every day," he said. "So don't tell me it's not about me, it is about me."</p>
    <p dir="ltr">"Now, they never tried to pull my pass, but they had this sort of arms-length relationship to Fox and tried to demonize it on a daily basis. So that's another part of American history and journalism in the White House press corps I think at least should be noted at this moment," he said.</p>
</blockquote>

<p dir="ltr">Additionally, Fox News journalists were called upon less frequently during briefings than reporters from other major networks. When Obama embarked on a media tour to promote healthcare reform in September 2009, he bypassed "Fox News Sunday," waiting until his final year in office in 2016 to make an appearance on the program.</p>

<p dir="ltr">Furthermore, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/a-rare-peek-into-a-justice-department-leak-probe/2013/05/19/0bc473de-be5e-11e2-97d4-a479289a31f9_story.html">The Washington Post reported</a> in 2013 that the Department of Justice monitored a Fox News correspondent and secured an email search warrant during a 2009 investigation into leaked national security information—an inquiry that, while touching on multiple reporters, appeared heavily focused on Fox News.</p>

<p dir="ltr">While a formal ban was never implemented, cordiality was often absent between the two sides. Fox News pointed to attempts to cut them out of specific interviews, whereas the administration blamed communication breakdowns while making no secret of its negative view of the network.</p>

<p dir="ltr">For additional context, past coverage has addressed claims regarding <a href="https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/biden-press-passes-trump-ban/">whether former U.S. President Joe Biden reduced press pool credentials</a>.</p>

<p dir="ltr"><i>Archives contributed to this report.</i></p>