The United States Department of Justice has announced it is investigating five major television networks for potential violations of the Sherman Antitrust Act, focusing on their coordinated decision last month to suspend coverage of President Donald Trump.
The investigation targets ABC, CBS, CNN, NBC and Fox News. The networks paused their presidential pool coverage for several days after the Trump administration revoked the White House press credentials of reporters from CNN, MS Now and Politico.
The Justice Department has requested the networks hand over communications related to the pool boycott. A DoJ spokesperson said: "The Antitrust Division is simply investigating to determine whether these news organisations have violated the antitrust laws." The networks have not yet commented on the probe.
The credential revocations came after President Trump accused the three outlets of writing "fiction or lies" about his administration. The White House reinstated their access following a court ruling, which sided with the outlets' argument that the restricted access violated their First Amendment rights.
The investigation marks the latest chapter in an escalating legal confrontation between the administration and the media. In February, the White House announced it was taking control of the press pool, a role managed by the White House Correspondents' Association for more than a century. The administration has also filed multiple lawsuits against news publications over their coverage of the president.