The U.S. Department of Justice has told five of the nation’s biggest TV-news outlets that it plans to investigate whether a recent decision to suspend pool coverage of President Trump after he denied White House access to CNN, MS NOW and Politico violated antitrust rules, according to people familiar with the matter.
\n\n“Members of the television press pool have proudly boycotted covering White House events. Group boycotts among commercial competitors can violate the Sherman Act,” a Justice Department spokesperson told the New York Times in a statement published Saturday evening. “The Antitrust Division is simply investigating to determine whether these news organizations have violated the antitrust laws.”
\n\nThe Justice Department informed several of the networks of its probe on Friday, according to these people.
\n\nThe Department of Justice did not respond immediately to a query seeking comment. CNN, CBS News, ABC News, NBC News and Fox News declined to comment or did not respond immediately to a query seeking a response.
\n\nWhether the DOJ has legal standing may be in doubt — the networks have coordinated pool coverage for decades without any legal challenge to their process — the action will likely only intensify a battle between the White House…
Original source: https://variety.com/v/tv/