Former US president Barack Obama weighed in on Trump’s move to block several media outlets from White House briefings.On September 18, Trump announced on Truth Social that he would be banning CNN, MS Now, and Politico from White House reporting. Accusing these media outlets of "fake" reporting, the POTUS said:"I am proud to announce that, effective immediately, I am banning Fake News CNN, MSNOW (who recently changed their name from MSNBC due to lack of viewership and credibility!), and Politico (The recipients of an illegal and ridiculous $8 Million Dollar subscription, an All Time Record, directly from the United States Government, under Crooked Joe Biden, in order to keep them 'alive.' Seems like corruption to me!), from the White House as a result of their constant 'reporting' FAKE NEWS!"Later in the day, the president also confirmed about the ban during a press conference at the White House. Trump’s decision to bar three outlets from White House coverage prompted objections from media organizations and politicians alike.Former President Barack Obama also addressed the controversy while speaking at an event at Colgate University on Friday. Obama said:"My imagination could not foresee some of the stuff that's going on right now. I believe there was just an announcement that the White House decided, 'You know what, CNN MS Now... you just can't come to the White House press briefings anymore; you're giving the current president unfavorable coverage.' I'm trying to think what would have happened if I had said, you know what, Fox News, 'You're out of here.' It's unimaginable."Barack Obama further took aim at people supporting Trump and remarked:"The point I'm making here is that if you have a certain cohort, let's call it 30 to 35% of the country right now, which thinks that's okay, well, what that means is we have not developed the kind of understanding of what democracy requires."White House Correspondents’ Association condemns Trump's ban on media outletsA day after the POTUS announced a ban on CNN, MS Now, and Politico, all three released statements confirming that their correspondents were denied access to the White House. The media outlets slammed the move. The White House Correspondents’ Association also responded to the ban in a statement released on X."Today’s action revoking access for journalists from CNN, POLITICO, and MSNOW violates the First Amendment. The implications extend beyond these organizations: a standard used to exclude one news outlet because of its coverage could be applied to any outlet in the future," the statement read.The response attributed to the WHCA president, Jacqui Heinrich, further read:"The American people, through a free and independent press, must be able to scrutinize those elected to power, regardless of whether government officials view it favorably. That’s why courts have repeatedly held that once the White House provides access to journalists, it cannot deny that access arbitrarily or based on the content of their reporting."The journalists' association demanded the Trump administration "immediately restore" the access of reporters from the three media outlets.Also read: “Fight fire with fire”: Mehdi Hasan calls for “next Democratic president” to ban Fox News from White House after Trump bans CNN and other outlets