It's no secret that Donald Trump watches a lot of cable news, which is evident in his constant attacks on the media and what gets reported on television. After the New York Times reported that the president watches as much as eight hours of TV a day, Trump decided to give his thoughts on social media.
Trump on TV
Since the start of his campaign for president over two and a half years ago, Donald Trump made it obvious that his reputation and image was important. The former host of "The Apprentice" had been in the headlines for years, and was the host of the top rated reality show on network television.
Since then, Trump has made it a habit to vent on social media over the way he is covered by the media, often calling out cable news networks and reporters who he doesn't agree with, labeling them "fake news" in the process. On Sunday, the New York Times reported that those close to the president say he watching between 4-8 hours of television a day. The report says Trump starts his morning before 6 a.m. with "Fox & Friends," before flipping over to "Morning Joe" on MSNBC. Trump also reportedly "hate-watches" Don Lemon on CNN, while getting more favorable coverage on Fox News to calm him down. In response to the news, Trump fired back during a December 11 tweet.
Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day - Wrong! Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News. I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the “dumbest man on television!” Bad Reporting.
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 11, 2017
Taking to Twitter on Monday morning, Donald Trump disputed the New York Times report that he binge-watches cable news.
"Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day," Trump tweeted, before adding his signature, "Wrong!"
President Trump watches at least four hours of TV a day, and sometimes eight, associates say https://t.co/ZZ57NEaBHo pic.twitter.com/O5N9eD0cwA
— Newsweek (@Newsweek) December 10, 2017
Not stopping there, Donald Trump continued on with his rant.
"Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News," he wrote. "I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the 'dumbest man on television!'" Trump said about the CNN host, while concluding, "Bad Reporting." The commander in chief's remarks come just one day after he went on a social media rant about the alleged "fake news." Trump called out several networks for their recent reporting, while accusing the press of ignoring the improved economy in what the president believes is a way to diminish the alleged success of his presidency over the last year.
Moving forward
While Donald Trump is denying the report about his television habits, it appears clear that he is not going to end his war of words with the mainstream media anytime soon. After just a year in office, the rift between Trump and the press is just getting started.
