WASHINGTON, D.C – The White House orders federal agencies to end their subscriptions to the Washington Post and the New York Times after multiple criticisms of their coverage by President Donald Trump.
Stephanie Grisham, a spokeswoman for the White House said in a statement that the cancellation of their subscriptions would generate savings. Although Trump has implicated that the White House orders the end of their subscription to the papers due to the fact that he describes them as “fake.” A term famously used by the President to describe a news coverage as unfavorable.
“Not renewing subscription throughout all federal agencies will significantly save our costs for taxpayers – hundreds of thousands of dollars,” Grisham noted.
Although it is not clear when this order would go into effect or thoroughly issued at all. The NY Times declined to comment, while The Washington Post did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
Trump has often opposed the coverage of his administration and himself, often making complaints about the U.S media a regular staple at his campaign rallies. However, this is a new step for a president to take. While the White House is in no danger of not being informed about the world, it will have less of a finger on the pulse of American print media.
“We don’t even want it in the White House anymore. They’re Fake.” Trump stated.
Moreover, it is unclear how many subscriptions the U.S government has. Although, the Washington Post offers free digital access to federal employees with a valid government email address. This may include military members, who receive their own email addresses as well.
In addition to the order of the subscription cancelation, Trump comes under the most focused scrutiny not only from the unfavorable media coverage but also the U.S. House of Representative’s impeachment inquiry stemming from a call between Trump and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
