Pope Leo XIV Reaffirms Press Freedom, Apologizes to Reporters on Flight to France

Pope Leo XIV used his flight to France on Friday to welcome journalists travelling with him and to restate his long-standing support for a free and independent press, as he responded to a question about the Trump administration's attempt to bar CNN and other news organisations from the White House.

Asked by a CNN reporter about the restrictions, the pontiff said the media were welcome on his plane. "I am very happy that here, you are all welcome," he said, adding that good media coverage matters and that it should extend "all the way around, for everyone."

The remarks came as CNN, MS NOW and Politico returned to the White House on Thursday after a judge granted them a reprieve from President Donald Trump's ban. The standoff between the administration and outlets whose coverage it dislikes has continued, and on a day when Chinese leader Xi Jinping was in Washington for a state dinner, no major American network carried live coverage. Both CNN and MS NOW said their journalists were denied access to Xi's state dinner arrival.

Leo has repeatedly emphasised the need for a free press, a theme he struck in one of his first audiences as pope when he met journalists who covered the 2025 conclave that elected him. On that occasion, the American pontiff called for the release of imprisoned journalists and described free speech and the press as a precious gift. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, however, independent media have been kept out of photo opportunities inside the pope's private studio when visiting heads of state meet him, and many of his private audiences with other groups and individuals remain closed to non-Vatican press.

On Friday's flight, Leo also apologised for missing the chance to speak with reporters during his previous international trip, when his Iberia charter broke down in Spain's Canary Islands and he returned home alone on the king's private jet, skipping the traditional airborne press conference. More than 70 reporters and the Vatican delegation had waited several hours at the airport for a replacement plane.

Addressing the disappointment when he came to the back of the aircraft, the pope said: "A special mention I would like to make for those of you who were traveling with me when we returned to Rome from Spain. I want to apologize personally for an incident, that I had nothing to do with, but which I know left a number of you unhappy with the fact that we couldn't have the flight back together back to Rome."

In other comments, Leo said he expected his alma mater Villanova to be the crowd favourite when the Augustinian university faces Notre Dame's basketball team in Rome on November 1. "They tell me that the people coming to the match, 90% are Villanova and 10% Notre Dame, so the voice of the people of God will be very strong on the Villanova side," he said.

The pope is on a four-day visit to France.