White House correspondents protest access denial over ‘Gulf of Mexico’ naming issue
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US President Trump after signing a proclamation to change the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the “Gulf of America”, on Feb 9.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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WASHINGTON - The White House Correspondents’ Association protested a decision by the White House on Feb 11 to bar an Associated Press (AP) reporter from an event with President Donald Trump
Mr Trump signed an executive order in January directing the Interior Secretary to change the name to the “Gulf of America”.
“The White House cannot dictate how news organisations report the news, nor should it penalise working journalists because it is unhappy with their editors’ decisions,” Mr Eugene Daniels, president of the association, said on Feb 11 in a statement posted on X.
“The move by the administration to bar a reporter from the Associated Press from an official event open to news coverage today is unacceptable.”
AP executive editor Julie Pace said in a statement earlier that its reporter had been blocked from attending an Oval Office event after being informed by the White House it would be barred unless it aligned its editorial standards with Trump's order.
“It is alarming that the Trump administration would punish AP for its independent journalism,” Ms Pace said, adding that limiting access violated the First Amendment of the US Constitution guaranteeing freedom of the press.
The AP says in its stylebook that the Gulf of Mexico has carried that name for more than 400 years and, as a global news agency, the AP will refer to it by its original name while acknowledging the new name Mr Trump has chosen.
The White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the statements by the WHCA and the AP. Mexico’s foreign ministry also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Like the United States, Mexico has a long coastline circling the body of water. Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum in January jokingly suggested North America, including the US, be renamed “Mexican America” - a historic name used on an early map of the region.
Most news organisations, including Reuters, call the body of water the Gulf of Mexico although, where relevant, Reuters style is to include the context about Mr Trump’s executive order. REUTERS
