Trump Banned AP Because It Would Not Give Him Rights to Assassination Photo, Report Says

News
Matt Growcoot
A man in a suit raises his fist while surrounded by security personnel. An American flag waves in the background against a clear blue sky. Another person, also in a suit, is walking up stairs, and the scene appears to be at a public event or rally.
AP Photo / Evan Vucci

The Associated Press (AP) refused to give President Donald Trump the rights to the iconic Butler assassination attempt photographs, which led to Trump’s rough treatment of the news agency, according to a report in The New York Times.

Fox News highlighted a paragraph in The Times reporting about Trump’s attacks on the media. The article mentions a private lunch between the president and a group of network anchors.

According to two people present, White House aides pointed to AP’s refusal to hand over rights to the image as part of the reason why AP was banned from meetings at the Oval Office and Air Force One.

Early on in Trump’s second term, he fell out with AP over its refusal to change the stylebook entry for the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. But The Times reporting suggests that Trump was also unhappy with the agency keeping the rights to the Butler photo.

The Butler photo, taken by then-AP staffer Evan Vucci on July 13, 2024, captured Trump moments after being grazed by a bullet.

Trump, who at the time was the presumptive nominee of the Republican Party, had the astonishing presence of mind to grasp the moment by raising his right fist in the air as blood streamed down his cheek while shouting “fight, fight, fight.” Surrounded by aides, and with the American flag and clear blue Pennsylvanian sky behind him, the photo is the most memorable from that day.

Less than one year later, after Trump had regained the presidency, Vucci was in court testifying on behalf of AP after the agency was banned from the White House and Air Force One. Vucci’s testimony was cited as key to AP’s legal victory, which restored its access to the White House.

“A lot of people say it’s the most iconic photo they’ve ever seen,” Trump said of Vucci’s photo. “They’re right and I didn’t die. Usually you have to die to have an iconic picture.”

Earlier this year, Vucci left his position as the chief photographer for AP in Washington, D.C., and moved to Reuters as a senior photojournalist while remaining in D.C.

Image creditsAP Photo / Evan Vucci

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