WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW
  • Jimmy Kimmel mocked new White House press secretary Katie Zacharia across successive monologues following her first briefing.
  • White House spokesman Davis Ingle called Kimmel a “no-talent loser” and said he was “devoid of actual talent.”
  • Communications director Steven Cheung defended Zacharia as qualified and praised her ability to communicate the Trump administration’s work.
  • Zacharia, 42, graduated from Pepperdine University’s law school in 2011 and previously appeared as a Fox News and Newsmax commentator.

Jimmy Kimmel used successive monologues to attack newly installed White House press secretary Katie Zacharia, prompting a blistering response from White House officials. The clash followed Zacharia’s first White House press briefing and quickly became a bitter exchange over her qualifications and Kimmel’s own talent.

The NY Post reported that Kimmel targeted Zacharia during Tuesday’s episode of ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” He called her “Malibu Katie,” mocked her intelligence, and compared the beginning of her new role to a child entering school.

“I want to introduce you to the new kid in Trump land. It was the first day of kindergarten for the new White House press secretary, Katie Zacharia,” Kimmel said.

The host then speculated that Zacharia had been appointed to keep President Donald Trump “awake and interested.” He also claimed that “every six months they bring in a new fawning blonde dolt to add to the rotation.”

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Kimmel continued by criticizing the duration of Zacharia’s first briefing. “Things did not get off to a great start for Malibu Katie today,” he said before delivering a vulgar attack on her role and relationship with the president.

“Her first briefing was brief. It was only 14 minutes long. But even in that short time, she accomplished exactly what she was brought in to do, which is slobber a whole tube of lip gloss all over the president’s behind.”

The White House responded Thursday through statements provided to Fox News Digital. White House spokesman Davis Ingle attacked Kimmel’s ratings, honesty, audience, and ability as an entertainer while answering the comedian’s remarks about Zacharia.

“Jimmy Kimmel is a no-talent loser who has beclowned himself with tanking ratings and by spewing disgusting lies to his dwindling audience,” Ingle said.

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Ingle escalated the criticism with another sweeping dismissal of Kimmel’s career. “He is so devoid of actual talent that nobody with any common sense would ever watch him unless it was to laugh at his miserable failures.”

White House communications director Steven Cheung also responded to Fox News Digital, but his statement concentrated on defending Zacharia. Cheung praised her addition to the White House team and argued that she was qualified to communicate the administration’s work to the public.

“Katie is a fabulous and wonderful addition to the team. She is uniquely qualified and whip-smart to help inform the American people about all the great things President Trump and his administration have been doing, and she will do an incredible job as press secretary,” Cheung told Fox News Digital.

Kimmel’s Tuesday monologue was not his first round of mockery aimed at Zacharia. On Monday, before her first briefing, he displayed a gym selfie showing her in workout gear and again made her intelligence the subject of his jokes.

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“This is the new press secretary, former Newsmax commentator Katie Zacharia, seen here, thinking,” Kimmel said. He added that her qualifications for the position included having “blonde hair” and being able to “do a thumbs up.”

Kimmel has no public record of having attained a college degree. Nevertheless, his criticism repeatedly focused on Zacharia’s intelligence and qualifications during the two monologues preceding the White House response.

Zacharia, 42, was selected last week to replace departed Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt. She graduated from law school at Pepperdine University in 2011 and briefly worked as a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security earlier this year.

She has also worked as a commentator for Fox News and Newsmax. When Trump announced her selection, he described Zacharia as “a loyal and brilliant supporter, right from the beginning.”

Zacharia called her appointment “the honor of a lifetime.” A photograph accompanying the report showed her joining Trump as he departed on the South Lawn of the White House on October 13, 2026, in Washington, DC.

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