AP denied access to White House event for refusing to rename Gulf of Mexico

The Associated Press (AP) says it was instructed to change the “Gulf of Mexico” to “Gulf of America,” and when it refused, its reporter was barred from Trump’s event.

In a statement issued on Tuesday, AP Executive Editor Julie Pace said the news agency was told it would be denied access to an Oval Office event unless AP “did not align its editorial standards with President Donald Trump’s executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.”

Pace stated that on Tuesday afternoon, an AP reporter was blocked from attending an executive order signing. The agency did not disclose the reporter’s identity.

“It is alarming that the Trump administration would punish AP for its independent journalism,” said Pace. “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.”

AP has previously stated that it will continue referring to the Gulf of Mexico while also noting Trump’s decision to rename it. “As a global news agency that disseminates news around the world, the AP must ensure that place names and geography are easily recognizable to all audiences,” the agency said.

As one of his first presidential actions, President Trump signed an Executive Order directing the renaming of the Gulf of Mexico and Mount Denali. A week after the order was signed, the U.S. Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) was updated with the name change, which will now be reflected in federal agencies.

Google Maps and Apple Maps have followed suit, displaying “Gulf of America” for U.S. users on their platforms. Google has stated that the name change will only apply to U.S. users, while both names will be displayed for international users—except in Mexico, where the name remains unchanged.