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Liberals have long accused journalists of letting Donald Trump walk all over them, lying to reporters’ faces and using them as political punching bags even as he basks in the glow of their camera lights. But the press’s posture may now be changing. After Trump announced he was banning three news outlets from the White House, the major TV networks—including Fox News(!)—acted as one to protest the president’s decision. The dustup carries important implications for the First Amendment and journalists’ ability to tell the rest of us what’s going on inside this administration’s inner sanctum.

Back up. How did this whole thing start?

With a Truth Social post, as Trumpian brouhahas often do. On Friday afternoon, the president put out a lie-filled, haphazardly capitalized post announcing he’d banned CNN, MS NOW, and Politico from the White House. Trump claimed the ban was “a result of their constant ‘reporting’ FAKE NEWS” and pledged that “Other Fake News Media Outlets” would get the same treatment. By Saturday, reporters from those three organizations were being denied White House access.

How have journalists responded?

CNN, MS NOW, and Politico jointly sued the administration, arguing that the ban “could not be a more direct assault on the First Amendment.” On Monday, the administration barred CNN from the “pool,” a rotating crop of TV journalists who film presidential events. So the other four major networks—ABC, CBS, Fox, and........

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