FACT FOCUS: No, Biden did not revoke the White House press passes of more than 400 journalists

President Donald Trump’s decision to ban CNN, MS NOW and Politico reporters from the White House grounds is leading to claims that then-President Joe Biden revoked White House access to hundreds of journalists in 2023. But the claims online misrepresent the effect that a stricter White House Press Office policy had on the number of journalists holding long-term passes to the complex.

Here's a closer look at the facts.

CLAIM: The Biden administration revoked the White House press passes of more than 400 journalists.

THE FACTS: This is false. In 2023, the White House revised its policy for obtaining long-term press passes. All journalists holding such passes were required to apply for a renewal under new criteria. This led to a drop in the number of journalists who had one.

There are two types of White House press passes. Hard passes are for journalists who cover the White House regularly. They require approval from the press secretary and a background check by the Secret Service, according to the White House Correspondents' Association, and are valid for an extended period. Those without a hard pass can request a temporary pass for specific events or on a day-to-day basis.

An email from the White House Press Office, sent in May 2023 during the Biden administration, notified those holding hard passes that it planned to “revise the policy on press hard passes to be consistent with that of prior administrations.” All hard passes that were current at the time would expire on July 31, the email read, and holders would be able to request renewals that would last for one year.

Applicants were required to meet specified criteria for approval, including full-time employment with a news organization, a physical address in the greater Washington, D.C. area, having accessed the White House for work at least once in the last six months, having an assignment to cover the White House on a regular basis, accreditation by a press gallery in the Supreme Court, Senate or House of Representatives, and a willingness to submit to any necessary investigation by the Secret Service.

Politico reported in August 2023 that the number of hard pass holders dropped from 1,417 to 975 after the change — a difference of 442. This included approvals from renewals and new applications.

A spokesperson told the outlet that the criteria were intended to ensure hard pass holders were actively working the White House beat, saying that “at the time we initiated this process in early May, roughly 40% of hard pass holders had not accessed the White House complex in the prior 90 days.” One person was denied a hard pass under the updated criteria, according to the spokesperson, but they did not identify who it was.

Jen Psaki, who served as the White House press secretary from 2021 to 2022, posted a TikTok video on Tuesday, calling the claims spreading online “total B.S.” and a “completely fabricated talking point.” She added that outlets often critical of Biden, including Fox News, Breitbart, One America News Network and Newsmax, all got hard passes under the new policy. She also noted in the video that “there were a lot of people with hard passes out there that had not used it in several years.”

Still, many on social media misrepresented the move.

“WHERE WAS THE OUTRAGE THEN? Biden's White House purged 442 reporters under new press credential rules and the media shrugged,” a popular X post reads. “Now Trump cuts off CNN and suddenly it is a constitutional crisis.”

Trump first denied CNN, MS NOW, and Politico reporters White House access on Saturday because of reporting he found to be “fake news.” All three outlets on Monday jointly sued his administration, calling the selective ban a “blatant violation” of the First Amendment. Trump said on social media that he "cherished” a free press but not “FAKE NEWS.”

In a Monday press release, Trump's White House cited the 2023 policy, among other actions taken by the Biden and Obama administrations against the media, as proof that “access changes are nothing new.” But experts say there are major differences.

“There is no fair comparison between President Trump deciding to try to ban journalists whose stories he doesn’t like, and President Biden establishing a system that ensured fair access for journalists, even ones who wrote stories he didn’t like,” said Peter Loge, an associate professor of media and public affairs at The George Washington University. “If the President always likes everything a reporter writes, that reporter isn’t doing their job. If someone doesn’t like to be criticized by the press, they shouldn’t run for president.”

Find AP Fact Checks here: https://apnews.com/APFactCheck.

Former President Joe Biden attends the ceremony commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks at the National September 11 Memorial in New York on Friday, Sept. 11, 2026. (Barry Williams /The Daily News via AP, Pool)

A sign in support of news outlets is seen at the White House press room, Sept. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

The James Brady Press Briefing Room is seen at the White House, Saturday, Sept. 19, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

McDonald’s said Wednesday it will spend $8.5 billion over the next decade to modernize its restaurants globally.

Fast-food traffic in many markets, including the U.S., is flat, so for McDonald’s to continue to grow it has to grab share from competitors and improve restaurant productivity, McDonald’s Chairman and CEO Chris Kempczinski said at a meeting with investors at the company’s Chicago headquarters. McDonald's wants to automate more tasks, like inventory and scheduling, and improve kitchen operations.

“The winners will be the companies that create more demand and deliver it more efficiently,” Kempczinski said.

McDonald's shares fell nearly 5% Wednesday, their largest percentage drop since April 2025, as investors shuddered at the eye-popping price of improving McDonald's 46,000 global stores.

On the product side, McDonald's said hand-breaded chicken, which has rolled out at 10,000 restaurants in Asia and a handful of restaurants near Chicago, has boosted sales and quality ratings. Many of McDonald's competitors, like Chick-fil-A and KFC, offer hand-breaded chicken. The company plans to expand its testing to more markets in the U.S. and Ireland next year.

McDonald's also plans to introduce grilled chicken sandwiches and wraps in the U.S. and other markets and experiment with products like egg bites and bowls to meet the needs of customers who are seeking more protein and varied portion sizes.

Skye Anderson, the president of McDonald’s USA, said approximately 30 million Americans are now using GLP-1 weight loss drugs, and they’re seeking smaller, more protein-packed meals as a result. But the company’s research indicates that 60 million Americans are actively seeking more protein in their diet.

“This is an opportunity. We need to keep giving them more reasons to make McDonald’s their first choice,” Anderson said at McDonald’s investor day.

McDonald’s said the restaurant modernizations include lockers to handle delivery orders, more visible coffee preparation areas to enhance quality perceptions, bigger play areas and improved kitchen layouts. Scales to help ensure order accuracy – which are already in use at 10,000 restaurants globally – will be in 20,000 restaurants by 2028, McDonald’s said.

The company is deploying its ArchIQ system, developed with Google, that improves order accuracy with artificial intelligence and automates tasks like inventory management and scheduling. Archy, the company's AI-enabled drive-thru ordering system, is now capable of taking orders in Spanish and English with a 90% accuracy rate.

Archy could eventually reduce at least 50 labor hours per week in a typical McDonald's, Chief Financial Officer Ian Borden said. But he said the intention is not to reduce staffing. Instead, employees can focus more on hospitality or on tasks like hand-breading chicken.

Kempczinski said customers have responded positively to Archy in testing because it helps make their orders more accurate.

“It's not AI is bad or AI is good. We try to be really thoughtful about how we use it,” he said.

McDonald's is also rolling out new employee training that will focus on hospitality and food quality, said Tiffanie Boyd, McDonald's chief people officer. The training will be more experience-based, showing employees what a perfectly cooked Big Mac tastes like, for example, and will encourage more pleasant interactions with customers.

At the same time, McDonald's is still focused on value. Kempczinski said low-income consumers, defined as U.S. households making $45,000 or less, continue to go out for fast food but not as often as they used to. McDonald's has done a good job with meal bundles, like its $5 meal deal, he said. But the company is exploring ways to offer entry-level prices on a basic menu of items in the U.S., as it does in Europe and other markets.

“This is the environment that we’re in right now. You have to be on your game and deliver that value,” Kempczinski said. “The pressure around cost of living isn't going away.”

McDonald’s U.S. franchisees typically spend up to $450,000 per decade to on required store remodels. Under the company’s new plan, they will have to spend an additional $800,000 over time, but McDonald’s will pay a portion of that cost in the form of rent relief and capital support.

Borden said the investments will be phased in over time when markets and individual franchisees are ready for them. Once the investments are made, the efficiency improvements will deliver roughly $100,000 in annual cash flow benefits to the average U.S. restaurant, some of which can be reinvested in the restaurant, Borden said.

“We'd love to see it going into hospitality to elevate the experience with our customers,” Borden said.

FILE - People line up to enter a McDonald's restaurant in Beijing on Aug. 20, 2025. (AP Photo/Andy Wong, File)