Katie Zacharia Is Out After 5 Days as White House Press Secretary

 

Katie Zacharia Is Out After 5 Days as White House Press Secretary

The ouster came as Ms. Zacharia was shadowed by questions about how she had presented her legal career and handled her first press briefing.

Katie Zacharia during her first briefing at the White House on Tuesday. She was fired on Friday.Credit...Kenny Holston/The New York Times

By Shawn McCreeshTyler Pager and Hamed Aleaziz

Oct. 16, 2026, 1:33 p.m. ET

https://www.nytimes.com/2026/10/16/us/politics/katie-zacharia-fired-press-secretary.html

 

President Trump’s new press secretary, Katie Zacharia, was fired Friday, after less than a week on the job, according to three people familiar with the matter.

Neither the White House nor Ms. Zacharia responded to requests for comment.

But Mr. Trump told reporters on Friday that he had encouraged Ms. Zacharia to “reconsider” the job.

“Honestly, if I were you, I’d reconsider,” he said, recounting his conversation with his press secretary. He added: “Katie, do you need this? I don’t think you need this.”

Ms. Zacharia had gotten off to a bumpy start with her first and final press briefing on Tuesday, followed by an onslaught of headlines about whether she had misrepresented herself as a lawyer — the president called her “an attorney” — despite failing her bar exam.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

Shawn McCreesh is a White House reporter for The Times covering the Trump administration.

Tyler Pager is a White House correspondent for The Times, covering President Trump and his administration.

Hamed Aleaziz covers the Department of Homeland Security and immigration policy for The Times.