US President Donald Trump barred the American news agency Associate Press (AP) from sending a reporter on Tuesday (Feb 11) to his Oval Office executive order signing. The outlet claimed the US president did so to "punish" it for not using the name of the "Gulf of Mexico" as "Gulf of America". 

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AP’s executive editor, Julie Pace, said in a statement, “As a global news organisation, The Associated Press informs billions of people around the world every day with factual, nonpartisan journalism." 

She said that the organisation was informed by the White House that if the news outlet would not "align its editorial standards" with the US president, AP would not be allowed in the Oval Office for any event. 

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"It is alarming that the Trump administration would punish AP for its independent journalism. Limiting our access to the Oval Office based on the content of AP’s speech not only severely impedes the public’s access to independent news, it plainly violates the First Amendment," Pace said. 

Aaron Terr, of the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression called Trump's decision as an "alarming attack on press freedom”.

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“The role of our free press is to hold those in power accountable, not to act as their mouthpiece. Any government efforts to erode this fundamental freedom deserve condemnation," Terr told The Guardian. 

The White House Correspondents’ Association (WHCA) took to social media to protest the decision in a statement. 

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“The White House cannot dictate how news organizations report the news, nor should it penalize working journalists because it is unhappy with their editors’ decisions,” said Eugene Daniels, WHCA president.

“The move by the administration to bar a reporter from the Associated Press from an official event open to news coverage today is unacceptable," Daniels further told the British news agency.

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(With inputs from agencies)