For the third day in a row, the White House blocked Associated Press reporters from attending official events on Thursday because it refuses to use the Gulf of America name, the news outlet confirmed.

An AP reporter was blocked from attending an open-press news conference with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the swearing-in ceremony for Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.

In a statement, AP Executive Editor Julie Pace called the ban “a deeply troubling escalation of the administration’s continued efforts to punish The Associated Press for its editorial decisions.”

“This is now the third day AP reporters have been barred from covering the president – first as a member of the pool and now from a formal press conference – an incredible disservice to the billions of people who rely on The Associated Press for nonpartisan news,” Ms. Pace said. 

The White House Correspondents’ Association, which is composed of news outlets that cover the White House, including The Washington Times, also decried the move as an “outrageous and deeply disappointing escalation of an already unacceptable situation.”

“This is a textbook violation of not only the First Amendment, but the president’s own executive order on freedom of speech and ending federal censorship. We again call on the White House to immediately reverse course and restore access to AP journalists,” said Eugene Daniels, President of the WHCA. 

The flap began Tuesday when the AP was informed that it would be barred from attending White House events over the organization’s decision to continue using the name Gulf of Mexico instead of Gulf of America.

President Trump issued an executive order, ratified by the federal government’s name registry and accepted by Google Maps, renaming the body of water as the Gulf of America. 

The AP protested the move and Ms. Pace sent a letter to White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles imploring the administration to stop banning the news organization’s journalists. The AP said it has not received a response to the letter. 

The AP said it would continue to use the “Gulf of Mexico” moniker. The news agency said that because it disseminates news around the world, it must ensure that names and geography are recognizable to global audiences. 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt suggested that the Associated Press was lying by continuing to use the Gulf of Mexico moniker. She said that if the White House detects falsehoods, it would “hold those lies accountable.”

“It is a fact that the body of water off the coast of Louisiana is called the Gulf of America, and I’m not sure why news outlets don’t want to call it that, but that is what it is,” Ms. Leavitt said.

• Jeff Mordock can be reached at jmordock@washingtontimes.com.