NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� The White House said Wednesday that news organizations that refuse to use President Donald Trump鈥檚 new name for the Gulf of Mexico were telling 鈥渓ies鈥� and insisted it would continue to bar Associated Press journalists from presidential events.
Trump has decreed that the international body of water 鈥� which borders Mexico, the United States and other nations 鈥� be called the Gulf of America. In its influential Stylebook, the AP said it would Gulf of Mexico, while also noting Trump鈥檚 decision, to ensure that names of geographical features are recognizable around the world.
The White House鈥檚 outright attempt at regulating language used by independent media 鈥� and the punitive measures attached to it 鈥� mark a sharp escalation in Trump鈥檚 often fraught dealings with news organizations.
At a regular briefing Wednesday, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said that 鈥渋t is a fact that the body of water off the coast of Louisiana is called the Gulf of America, and I鈥檓 not sure why news outlets don鈥檛 want to call it that."
In reality, the body lies partially in waters that don鈥檛 belong to the United States and has been called the Gulf of Mexico for hundreds of years.
On Tuesday, AP reporters were blocked from attending events in the Oval Office and the White House鈥檚 Diplomatic Reception Room. While an AP reporter was in the White House briefing room Wednesday for Leavitt鈥檚 remarks, they were turned away at a later event in the Oval Office for the swearing in of Tulsi Gabbard as national intelligence director.
Julie Pace, AP鈥檚 senior vice president and executive editor, wrote to White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles on Wednesday objecting to the moves.
鈥淭he actions taken by this White House were plainly intended to punish the AP for the content of its speech,鈥� Pace wrote. 鈥淚t is among the most basic tenets of the First Amendment that the government cannot retaliate against the public or the press for what they say.鈥�
White House says Oval Office access is a privilege
The White House pointed out that the AP was allowed into its briefing Wednesday but continued to take issue with the style of the gulf鈥檚 name. 鈥淣obody has the right to go into the Oval Office and ask the president of the United States questions,鈥� Leavitt said. 鈥淲e reserve the right to decide who gets to go into the Oval Office.鈥�
Generally, when the press is permitted to cover White House events where space is tight, a small pool of journalists are allowed in. The AP, which transmits news to thousands of clients, has traditionally been a part of that pool in past administrations.
Asked if barring AP reporters was retaliatory, Leavitt said that the Interior Secretary has codified the name change in official documents and that 鈥減retty much every other outlet in this room has recognized that body of water as the Gulf of America.鈥�
The move raised alarms among several advocates for the press. 鈥淏arring an AP journalist from covering an Oval Office event because the AP has not adopted President Trump鈥檚 change of name to what has long been called the Gulf of Mexico is an affront to the First Amendment,鈥� said noted attorney Floyd Abrams.
A major consortium of news organizations, the Inter American Press Association, was 鈥渁n act of censorship and intimidation that violates the freedom of the press enshrined in the United States Constitution.鈥�
The president of the IAPA, Jos茅 Roberto Dutriz, expressed concern about this measure: 鈥淩estricting press coverage and warning against the AP demonstrate a troubling intention to impose official criteria on public interest information, with the threat of reprisals for those who do not comply," said Dutriz, CEO and general director of La Prensa Gr谩fica in El Salvador.
Many who write follow AP style
Users of the Google map app in the United States will now see the body of water referred to as the Gulf of America, the company said. Mexican users would see 鈥淕ulf of Mexico.鈥� Elsewhere in the world, Google identifies it as 鈥淕ulf of Mexico (Gulf of America).鈥�
But the AP's decision is influential because many news outlets and other organizations use it as an arbiter of how to consistently refer to things.
Some larger outlets have their own rules.
鈥擳he New York Times said it would continue to use Gulf of Mexico, while noting Trump's renaming in stories that discuss that issue. The gulf, which borders Mexico and Cuba as well as the United States, has been known as the Gulf of Mexico for more than 400 years.
鈥擳he Washington Post also said it would use Gulf of Mexico in most references because it 鈥渋s not solely within the United States' jurisdiction and the name of Gulf of America might confuse global readers.鈥�
鈥擣ox News said that, starting Sunday, it would use Gulf of America in all of its references.
Trump has also ordered that the United States' tallest mountain revert to the name Mount McKinley after President Barack Obama changed the Alaska peak to its Indigenous name, Denali. AP says it would follow Trump's decision because he has the authority to rename areas that are solely within the United States.
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David Bauder writes about media for the AP. Follow him at and
David Bauder, The Associated Press
