美司法部对五大电视网联合停播展开反垄断调查DOJ Probes Five TV Networks Over White House Pool Coverage Suspension

美国司法部反垄断局对ABC、CBS、CNN、Fox News和NBC五家电视网展开的调查于周六由《纽约时报》率先报道。司法部官员证实，部门已在周五发出民事调查要求，要求涉事电视网提交与联合采访轮值及停播相关的沟通记录，以评估是否存在违反联邦竞争法规的行为。

The Justice Department's Antitrust Division inquiry into the five broadcast networks—ABC, CBS, CNN, Fox News, and NBC—was first reported by The New York Times on Saturday. According to department officials, federal investigators issued civil investigative demands on Friday, directing the television networks to turn over communications related to pool operations and the disruption of coverage to determine whether competition laws were breached.

司法部发言人埃米莉·科文顿在给多家媒体的声明中确认了调查范畴，指出电视联合采访团成员抵制对白宫活动的报道，而商业竞争对手之间的联合抵制可能触犯旨在遏制垄断行为的《谢尔曼法案》。科文顿强调，反垄断局启动该项审查纯粹是为了查明这些新闻机构是否违反了反垄断法。

Justice Department spokesperson Emily Covington confirmed the investigation's focus in statements to news outlets, stating that television press pool members engaged in a boycott of White House events. She noted that group boycotts among commercial competitors can violate the Sherman Act, the federal statute prohibiting monopolistic practices, and added that the division is examining whether the news organizations broke antitrust laws.

此次调查展开前两周，特朗普盟友劳拉·卢默曾公开敦促司法部以反垄断为由向各大电视网发难。周六晚间，面对司法部的行动，涉事的五大主流广播电视网中，NBC、CBS和CNN明确拒绝置评，ABC新闻部表示预计会收到正式通知，Fox News与白宫方面则未立即回应置评请求。

The move comes two weeks after Trump ally Laura Loomer publicly urged the department to challenge the major television networks on antitrust grounds. Representatives for NBC, CBS, and CNN declined to comment on Saturday evening, while ABC News stated it anticipated receiving formal notification, and Fox News and the White House did not immediately respond to inquiries.

今年9月中旬，特朗普宣布撤销CNN、MSNOW以及Politico记者的白宫采访证，指责这些机构持续发布虚假新闻。白宫随后向这三家新闻机构分别发出信函，声称它们发表的关于白宫新宴会厅、对伊朗战争以及共和党中期大会等特定报道威胁国家安全，并违反了针对记者的专业素养与礼仪规范。

In mid-September, Donald Trump announced the revocation of White House credentials for journalists from CNN, MSNOW, and Politico, alleging that the outlets were constantly producing fake news. The White House subsequently sent formal letters to each of the three organizations, asserting that specific stories covering topics such as the new White House ballroom, the ongoing war with Iran, and the Republican midterm convention constituted threats to national security and breached established standards of reporter professionalism and decorum.

白宫剥夺相关机构采访资格后，负责白宫电视联合报道轮值的电视网主席宣布，鉴于CNN无法履行指定的轮值任务，采访团将不会指派替代机构。五大电视网随即一致决定暂停对总统公开活动的联合转播以示声援。这一停播恰逢中国国家主席访美期间，使得联合转播机制在关键时刻中断，五大电视网在当时发表的联合声明中强调公众有权获得关于政府的独立信息。

Following the administration's ban, the television pool chair stated that because Trump prevented CNN from fulfilling its scheduled pool rotation, no replacement pool would be put in place. The five broadcast networks then jointly suspended their pooled presidential coverage in solidarity. The disruption coincided with Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to Washington, halting pooled video transmission during a major diplomatic event while the networks issued a collective statement affirming the public's vital interest in receiving independent information.

在记者证件遭撤销后，CNN、MSNOW和Politico对特朗普政府提起联邦诉讼，指控白宫实施的采访禁令侵犯了宪法第一修正案所赋予的权利。司法部在法庭上为特朗普政府的决定进行辩护，但主审联邦法官随后作出裁决，要求行政部门在14天内临时恢复三家媒体的采访权限。该项保护命令本周已获法官延长至周二，相关诉讼目前仍在审理之中。

Following the revocation of their credentials, CNN, MSNOW, and Politico filed a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration, asserting that the White House media ban violated their First Amendment protections. While the Justice Department defended the administration's actions in court, a federal judge granted the news organizations relief by issuing an order requiring the government to temporarily restore their press access for 14 days. A federal judge extended that order this week through Tuesday as the underlying litigation continues.

随着法官裁定暂停禁令，受限机构的采访资格得以暂时恢复，持续数日的白宫电视联合采访停摆状态也随之结束。五大主流电视网已重新恢复对总统公开露面及出访行程的联合轮值摄录，并继续向更广泛的媒体机构分发音视频素材。然而，即便采访机制重回正轨，司法部在此期间同步启动的反垄断调查，仍使政府与媒体之间的争端延伸到了新的司法审查层面。

The judicial intervention halted the multi-day suspension of pool coverage, allowing the affected outlets to return to the complex and leading the networks to resume pooled broadcasting. The five major television networks have since returned to their scheduled duties of recording the president's public appearances and travel to distribute footage and audio to other outlets. Despite the resumption of normal television pool operations, the Justice Department's subsequent antitrust inquiry has expanded the dispute between the administration and national press organizations into competition law scrutiny.

针对司法部的反垄断调查，新闻自由倡导机构提出了严厉指责。新闻自由记者委员会主席布鲁斯·D·布朗直言，该调查似乎只是一个借口，目的是在总统亲自实施媒体禁令期间，向各电视网索取有关其如何报道白宫日常活动的内部记录。布朗指出，新闻机构关于新闻报道的采编决定受宪法第一修正案保护，政府动用反垄断执法权介入媒体报道构成了危险的先例。

Press freedom advocacy organizations issued sharp criticisms in response to the Justice Department's antitrust inquiry into the television networks. Bruce D. Brown, president of the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, stated that the investigation appears to be a pretext for seeking internal records from the networks regarding how they cover daily White House events during a media ban put in place by the president himself. Brown emphasized that the coverage decisions made by news organizations are protected under the First Amendment, warning against the deployment of antitrust authority into editorial matters.

保护记者委员会美洲区总监何塞·萨莫拉同样公开批评了司法部的审查行动，他在社交平台X上发文指出，公众的知情权依赖于采访权限，联邦政府不应利用反垄断调查来恐吓捍卫采访权限的新闻机构。与此同时，涉事的五大电视网在面对政府调查要求时，普遍选择低调应对，大部分机构避免公开卷入舆论论战，将抗争焦点集中在保护宪法赋予的采编自主权上。

Jose Zamora, the Americas regional director for the Committee to Protect Journalists, also criticized the administration's decision to investigate, stating on social media platform X that the public's right to know depends directly on press access and that the government should not deploy antitrust investigations to intimidate news outlets defending that access. Meanwhile, the five targeted television networks have largely maintained a cautious posture regarding the civil investigative demands, keeping their focus on protecting constitutional reporting protections.