In a recent conversation on his Triggered podcast, Donald Trump Jr. and conservative commentator Michael Knowles discussed the possibility of overhauling the White House Press Briefing Room and shifting the media landscape away from traditional outlets like The New York Times and The Washington Post.

Jul 18, 2024; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Donald Trump Jr. is interviewed on Radio Town during the final day of the Republican National Convention at the Fiserv Forum. The final day of the RNC featured a keynote address by Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump.
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The two agreed that the current state of the press room, with its traditional media presence, is outdated and should be opened to independent journalists and podcasters who have larger audiences and stronger followings.

Trump Jr. began by noting the challenges facing the mainstream media, particularly the struggles of traditional outlets such as The New York Times and The Washington Post, and the need to change the structure of the briefing room. “But I wonder now, you know, as your father is assembling his team, as maybe Karoline Leavitt is looking at the new Press Briefing Room chart, maybe it’s time to reorder that chart. Maybe take away some people’s seats,” Knowles suggested.

Republican candidate for New Hampshire’s 1st District congressional seat Karoline Leavitt of Hampton votes at Winnacunnet High School Tuesday, Nov. 8, 2022. She is challenging two-term incumbent Democratic Rep. Chris Pappas of Manchester. Karolineleavittvoting1108 Falcigno 04

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Trump Jr. responded, revealing a conversation he had with his father while on a plane following a SpaceX launch. “So we’re going to break some news here, because I literally had this conversation. I was flying back. I was on the plane, I guess with my father, either. I think it was coming back from the SpaceX launch with Elon last week, and I was sitting there, and we were talking about, like the podcast world and some of our friends and Rogan and guys like you, and you know me, to a lesser extent, I wouldn’t be able to get a seat,” he began.

“That would be nepotism, or whatever the hell you know, I’d be indicted again. I’d have to do more congressional testimony, so I’ll pass,” he joked, but continued seriously.

Trump Jr. shared that the conversation centered on the behavior of the media and the growing popularity of independent voices. “We actually had this conversation about, like, given how the media has behaved, I mean, you brought up the New York Times, you know, you saw the fact check of Bobby Kennedy talking about the different ingredients in Fruit Loops, and it was like, No, it’s exactly the same as Canada, except we use yellow dye number five here instead of like, orange, like carrots, and we use purple dye, number 2,000,000,376 instead of blueberry extract. And I’m like, that’s your fact check. Like, it’s the same, but for these, like, really toxic chemicals that are banned in, you know, dozens of countries. Like, I don’t get it,” Trump Jr. explained, referencing the media’s fact-checking of Bobby Kennedy’s statement.

Trump Jr. went on to emphasize the disconnect between mainstream media and their audience: “But we had the conversation about opening up the press room to a lot of these independent journalists. Like, you know, why should, if the New York Times has lied, they’ve been adverse to everything they’re functioning as the marketing arm of the Democrat Party, like, why not open it up to people who have larger viewerships, stronger followings?”

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The two also criticized the financial struggles of traditional media, particularly The Washington Post. “How much money are they losing? The Washington Post lost $70 million. You know, doesn’t seem like they’re a great success,” Trump Jr. remarked, further questioning the value of the old media.

“Just because they’ve been there longer, it’s like the way Congress functions, like, you get a committee not because you know anything about banking, but because you’ve been there longer. And it’s like, Doesn’t seem like a great way to do things.”

Trump Jr. concluded by mentioning that the idea of restructuring the press room may be in the works: “So we’ve had that conversation. Like, that’s a great idea, Don I was like, I was like, I think we should do this. And so that may be in the works. Let’s see. That’s going to blow up some heads. So we’ll see.”

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This discussion reflects a broader dissatisfaction with the current media landscape and a desire to bring more diverse voices into the national conversation, especially in the context of the White House press briefings.

The call for opening up the briefing room to independent media is part of a larger movement pushing back against the perceived bias of mainstream outlets.

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