What’s the White House press pool?

According to NBC News, the network television pool consists of NBC, ABC, CBS, CNN and Fox[1], and the networks take turns sending a journalist and a camera crew to both scheduled and spontaneous administration coverage.[1]CBS News reports that the wider pool is made up of print, wire, and digital reporters, still photographers, and broadcast and radio journalists[2] who share what they gather with the rest of the press corps. CBS also reports that in February 2025, the White House announced that its press office would choose the organizations participating in the pool.[2]NBC News reports that Trump barred CNN, MS NOW and Politico from the White House grounds last month.[1] According to NBC, the pool's members responded by declining pool coverage for four days initially and then on two subsequent occasions when CNN was blocked[1].NBC News says this meant limited video coverage of Trump for six days, including his summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping[1] and his trip to the UN General Assembly.Justice Department spokeswoman Emily Covington told NBC News that "group boycotts among commercial competitors can violate the Sherman Act."[3]Seth Stern of the Freedom of the Press Foundation called the DOJ investigation "nonsense,"[4] CNBC reports.NBC News reports that the three banned outlets are challenging the Trump policy in federal court[1].