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Public disputes concerning news and entertainment media, ownership, mergers, editorial decisions, reporting, and media institutions.
Counts show individual statements. They do not assign an overall position.
15 statements on this page. Dates: December 15, 2025 to October 16, 2026
15 matching statements. Dates: December 15, 2025 to October 16, 2026
15 published statements. Dates: December 15, 2025 to October 16, 2026
1 published statement. Dates: December 15, 2025
1 statement on this page. Dates: December 15, 2025
Role at the time: Plaintiff, through legal counsel
Statement summary
Trump's complaint alleges that the documentary fabricated a damaging depiction of his January 6 speech.
“This action concerns a false, defamatory, deceptive, disparaging, inflammatory, and malicious depiction of President Trump”
The original complaint alleges that the documentary edit falsely depicted Trump calling for violence. It is a party's pleading, not a judicial finding.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)The reference point is the BBC's edit. Trump expressly condemns it as false and malicious.
8 published statements. Dates: September 18, 2026 to September 26, 2026
8 statements on this page. Dates: September 18, 2026 to September 26, 2026
Role at the time: President of the United States, speaking to reporters outside the White House
Statement summary
Asked by MS NOW's Akayla Gardner whether he only wanted outlets that support him in the White House press pool and whether he wanted tough questions, Trump said he wanted "real news, not fake news," told her to "be quiet," and called her network fake news.
“No, no, no. I want real news, not fake news — like you. I want- Listen. I want real news. I love an open, free press. What I don't like is the fake… Wait, wait, be quiet. What I don't like is fake news. And they're fake news.”
Report on an exchange outside the White House on Saturday, September 26, the day after CNN was dropped from the Air Force One pool for Trump's Tennessee trip. MS NOW White House correspondent Akayla Gardner asked Trump whether he only wanted outlets that support him in the press pool and whether he wanted tough questions; Trump told her to "be quiet" and called her network "fake news." Includes an embedded video clip of the exchange.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Relative to Trump's decision to exclude CNN, MS NOW and Politico from White House access because of their coverage, he responds to a question about that policy by saying he wants only "real news" and calling MS NOW fake news, defending the basis for the exclusion. We labeled it Defended or excused.
Role at the time: President of the United States, posting on Truth Social
Statement summary
Hours after confronting CNN's Kaitlan Collins at the United Nations and telling her "You shouldn't be here," Trump posted on Truth Social calling her a "SLEAZEBAG" and a "Third Rate 'Reporter,'" saying she and CNN have a "TRUMP" addiction, and calling them "sick, treasonous, and demented." In the same post he described the judge set to hear the outlets' case the next day as "totally disloyal."
“All of the SLEAZEBAGS, like Third Rate "Reporter," Kaitlan Collins, of Fake News CNN, a truly unhappy person, said they weren't going to be covering me. Then why were they ranting and raving like Lunatics, in the Press Area, at the United Nations? Why was she there? She's got a "TRUMP" addiction, and so does CNN and MSDNC. They're all sick, treasonous, and demented!”
Role at the time: President of the United States, speaking to reporters at the United Nations
Statement summary
Before addressing the UN General Assembly, President Trump told CNN's Kaitlan Collins he was surprised CNN was covering him and that she should not be there covering him, saying CNN had said it would not cover him. Collins replied that the United Nations allowed CNN in, and later said CNN never said it would stop covering the president.
“You should not be here covering me. You said you weren't going to cover me.”
CNBC report on President Trump's exchange with CNN's Kaitlan Collins before he addressed the UN General Assembly on Sept. 22, 2026. It quotes Collins asking about a poll on the Iran war, Trump saying he is surprised CNN is covering him, Collins replying that the United Nations allowed CNN in, and Trump's answer. It also quotes Collins saying afterward that CNN never said it would not cover the president. CNBC discloses that it and MS NOW are divisions of Versant Media.
Role at the time: President of the United States, in a Truth Social post
Statement summary
After CNN, MS NOW and Politico sued over the exclusion, Trump posted on Truth Social that the case had been assigned to Judge Timothy Kelly, called him "sadly" a Trump appointee, and said outlets that write negatively and violate national security with unnamed sources shouldn't be allowed access to the Oval Office. He said the White House would appeal regardless of the ruling. Separately that week, off social media, he called the judge "not a particularly fair judge."
“As usual, we'll go for appeal because Fake News people and publications that only write negatively, and who violate our National Security by writing false and defamatory stories with unknown 'sources,' shouldn't be allowed access to the most important Office anywhere in the World.”
Role at the time: President of the United States, posting on Truth Social
Statement summary
In a Truth Social post on the morning of September 21, Trump wrote that the White House is “not instituting an assault on the Free Press” but on “the FAKE NEWS,” which he called “corrupt, purposeful, pervasive, fully coordinated, and totally out of control” and “a threat to our National Security” that “must be stopped, NOW!” The Hill reports the post followed CNN, MS NOW and Politico's announcement that they would sue over the ban.
“The White House is not instituting an assault on the Free Press, something which I cherish. It is instituting an assault on the FAKE NEWS, something that has grown like Cancer in our beloved United States of America. It is corrupt, purposeful, pervasive, fully coordinated, and totally out of control. It is a threat to our National Security, and must be stopped, NOW! Thank you for your attention to this matter. President DONALD J. TRUMP”
Role at the time: President of the United States, answering reporters' questions at an Oval Office event on health care
Statement summary
Asked what the exclusion means in practice, and whether it covers press badges, the press pool or the Oval Office, Trump said he does not want the outlets in his office or at the White House, that the ban would go "as far as you can", and that he would love it if they could straighten themselves out.
“A very simple ban. I don't want them in my office. I don't want them here. I would say the ban would go as far as you can, and if they could straighten themselves out, you know, if they could straighten themselves out, I'd love it.”
Role at the time: President of the United States, answering reporters' questions at an Oval Office event on health care
Statement summary
Asked in the Oval Office why he expected the exclusion to survive a court challenge, after a reporter noted that a similar move against CNN in his first term had not, Trump said it was good to point out fake news whether or not the exclusion survives, that a court should not allow fake news to be written "day after day after day," and that "somebody has a right to keep them away if they're going to write false stories all the time."
“No, but I think it's good. I think it's good to point it out whether it survives or doesn't. I mean, I don't think a court should allow, depends on the judge you get, to be honest with you. I don't think that a court should allow fake news to be written day after day after day. I think that somebody has a right to keep them away if they're going to write false stories all the time.”
Role at the time: President of the United States, in a post on his Truth Social account (posted again to his X account at 8:11 PM EDT)
Statement summary
In a Truth Social post at 3:04 PM EDT on September 18, 2026, President Trump said that, effective immediately, he was banning CNN, MSNOW and Politico from the White House because of their reporting, which he called fake news. He wrote that outlets should not be able to constantly write or report fiction and lies about the President, his administration or the country, and that other outlets would follow.
“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! Media Outlets shouldn’t be able to constantly write or report FICTION and LIES when they’re covering the President of the United States, the Trump Administration, or the United States of America. Other Fake News Media Outlets to follow.”
1 published statement. Dates: September 23, 2026
1 statement on this page. Dates: September 23, 2026
Role at the time: President of the United States
Response to this claim
Trump administration officials discussed or considered affixing Donald Trump's name, in some unspecified way, to Ford's Theatre or the Ford's Theatre National Historic Site.
“want to affix my name to Ford's Theatre, in Washington, D.C., where Abraham Lincoln was assassinated, is a ridiculous lie.”
Trump personally denied that he or the White House wanted his name affixed to Ford's Theatre. His post calls the report false but does not provide records about internal discussions among other officials.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)The case reference point is the reported occurrence of an internal Ford's Theatre naming discussion. Trump calls the report a lie and denies that he or the White House wants his name attached to the theater. This is a denial, although Cheung's statement more directly addresses whether a discussion occurred.
1 published statement. Dates: October 16, 2026
1 statement on this page. Dates: October 16, 2026
Role at the time: President of the United States, speaking to reporters at the White House
Statement summary
Asked whether he was upset that Zacharia had not disclosed that she did not pass the bar exam, Trump said he was not hiring her to be a lawyer and that it probably would not have mattered.
“Well, I wasn’t hiring her to be a lawyer, ... I would say it probably wouldn’t have mattered.”
Newsweek report on Trump's October 16 remarks to reporters about Zacharia, including his answer when asked whether he was upset that she had not disclosed that she did not pass the bar exam.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)The matter under scrutiny is how Zacharia described her legal qualifications. Trump says her bar result probably would not have mattered because he did not hire her as a lawyer, which plays down the issue. He does not address whether her descriptions of herself were accurate.
4 published statements. Dates: September 30, 2026 to October 15, 2026
4 statements on this page. Dates: September 30, 2026 to October 15, 2026
Role at the time: President of the United States
Statement summary
Trump rules out streaming while saying it might have been a strong deterrent. He says many well-meaning people would rather not watch.
“I think streaming the execution for all to see might have been a strong deterrent for the World to witness how America deals with Terrorists and SCUM like Hasan but, many very good and well meaning people would rather not watch him die, through streaming, or through any other visual device. He will die, as scheduled, by firing squad, but this event will not be streamed.”
Trump cancels streaming while retaining the scheduled firing-squad execution and optional in-person viewing for victims' immediate families. He also says a broadcast might have had deterrent value.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)The reference point is public streaming. Trump rules it out while expressly retaining a positive assessment of its possible deterrent value.
Role at the time: President of the United States, in remarks posted on video by the White House's Rapid Response 47 account
Statement summary
President Trump said there are two views on whether to show Hasan's execution, said showing it might deter others, and said he would make the decision, adding that he knew what the military would like to do.
“There are two thoughts. Don't show it and show it. Because, you know, by showing it, maybe other people won't be doing what he did. So I'll make a decision, ultimately. I know what the military would like to do, but we'll make a decision.”
Video of Trump's remarks posted by Rapid Response 47, the White House's rapid-response account.
Role at the time: President of the United States
Statement summary
Trump called the ads a positive promotion for the country and paying for them with public money a standard practice, then said he had decided to do the Patriotic Ads, among others, and pay for them himself and with money he raised for MAGA, Inc.
“which I consider to be a positive promotion for our Great U.S.A., and paying for them with U.S.A. money. This is a rather standard thing to do but, rather than doing that, although nothing will make them happy, I have decided to do the Patriotic Ads, among others, and pay for them myself, and with money I raised for MAGA, Inc.”
Trump's original post defends the prior public funding and announces a switch to personal and PAC funds. It gives no accounting of reimbursement for earlier spending.
Role at the time: President of the United States
Statement summary
Trump said the ads are for the country and that, if somebody said that is wrong, he would gladly pay the money.
“Now, if somebody said that that's wrong, I'll gladly pay the money. But these are ads for the country”
ABC directly quotes Trump's September 30 remarks defending the ads as promoting the country and offering to pay if their funding is deemed wrong.
Archived copyTrump's own Truth Social post, posted hours after he confronted CNN's Kaitlan Collins at the United Nations and roughly a day before the TRO hearing in CNN v. Trump before Judge Timothy Kelly, whom Trump calls "disloyal" in the same post.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Trump continues to justify excluding CNN by attacking Collins's conduct and CNN's coverage directly, treating her presence and questions at the United Nations as further proof the outlets deserve exclusion, consistent with his earlier defenses of the ban rather than any softening or denial of the underlying dispute.
Relative to Trump's decision to exclude CNN, MS NOW and Politico from White House access because of their coverage, Trump tells CNN's correspondent she should not be covering him, which defends treating the outlet as one that should not have access to him. We labeled it Defended or excused.
Report on Judge Timothy Kelly's ruling restoring CNN, MS NOW and Politico's access, which also quotes Trump's Truth Social post from earlier that week reacting to the outlets' lawsuit and an off-social-media remark that the judge was "not a particularly fair judge."
Relative to Trump's decision to exclude CNN, MS NOW and Politico from White House access because of their coverage, he argues outlets that write negatively shouldn't have access to the Oval Office. That defends continuing the exclusion, so we labeled it Defended or excused.
Cited from the trumpstruth.org archive, which records the original post ID, the original URL (truthsocial.com/@realDonaldTrump/117308890736529824) and the posting time. The Hill quotes the same text and links to the original post.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)On Trump’s decision to exclude CNN, MS NOW and Politico from White House access because of their coverage, Trump rejects the description of the ban as an assault on the free press but says the White House is instituting an assault on what he calls fake news, which he says “must be stopped, NOW!” The post does not name the ban or the three outlets; it is recorded here because The Hill reports it as his response to their announced lawsuit. It endorses acting against the outlets rather than only disputing a label, so the closest competing label, “Challenged the characterization”, does not fit.
Official White House video of the President's health-care event in the Oval Office on September 18, 2026, which began at about 3:38 PM EDT and ran 56 minutes. The quoted wording is our transcription of the video audio. Transcription adds punctuation but no words. CNN's published transcription of the passage reads "It's a very simple ban"; the recording is followed here.
Trump restates and defines the act in his own terms, saying he does not want the outlets in his office or at the White House. The closest competing label is “Mixed or conditional”, because he says he would "love it" if the outlets straightened themselves out. That loses because the remark describes when he might relent, not a reservation about the exclusion he is defending.
Official White House video of the President's health-care event in the Oval Office on September 18, 2026, which began at about 3:38 PM EDT and ran 56 minutes. The quoted wording is our transcription of the video audio. Transcription adds punctuation but no words.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Trump defends the act directly and on legal grounds, saying it is worth doing whether or not a court upholds it and that outlets can be kept away if they write false stories. The closest competing label is “Mixed or conditional”, because he says "whether it survives or doesn't" and "depends on the judge you get". That loses because those phrases concern the litigation outcome, not his position on the exclusion, which he affirms.
Trump's own post announcing the exclusion. The page at this URL carries the full post text; that text is character-for-character identical to the archive copy and to Trump's 8:11 PM EDT cross-post on X. The Truth Social page carries no timestamp, so the 3:04 PM EDT time comes from the archive page (Original Post Date Friday, September 18, 2026, 03:04 pm EDT; re-captured Saturday, 12:37 PM EDT with the text unchanged). Truth Social's own canonical URL is this form, without /posts/; both forms return the same page. The archive page is included as a readable backup and as the source of the timestamp.
Archived copy (opens in a new tab)Trump is the author of that act and states it as a decision he is proud of, giving the outlets' coverage as the reason, so the post advances the conduct under scrutiny rather than describing it. The closest competing label is “Challenged the characterization”, because the post calls the outlets' reporting "fake news" and "lies". That loses because those assertions are offered as the justification for an exclusion he announces and endorses in the same post.
The case asks whether Pete Hegseth should livestream Nidal Hasan's execution; it concerns the broadcast proposal, not Hasan's conviction or capital punishment. Trump weighs "Don't show it and show it", offers a reason for showing it, and says "I'll make a decision, ultimately". Because he states no decision and leaves the outcome open, we labeled it Mixed or conditional. The closest competing label is Defended or excused, since he gives an argument for showing it; it loses because he does not endorse the broadcast.
The conduct under scrutiny is federal payment for Trump-promoting ads. He defends public payment as standard while announcing that the Patriotic Ads, among others, will be paid for another way, so the label is Mixed or conditional. The closest competing label is Defended or excused; it does not fit because he announces that public money will not be used for them.
The conduct under scrutiny is federal payment for Trump-promoting ads. Trump defends the ads as being for the country but says he would gladly pay if somebody said that was wrong, which makes his position depend on a stated condition. The closest competing label is Defended or excused; it does not fit because he offers to pay if the payment is objected to.
