Stephen Bannon insults press to their faces, 'could care less' about mending relations

President Trump has a love-hate relationship with the press, enjoying billions of dollars worth of free coverage during his campaign but slamming any negative reports as biased or "fake news." For the president's chief strategist, Stephen Bannon, there is no love — no longer even for Breitbart News, which he headed before joining the Trump team.

Bannon told CNN that he was "livid" about an article Breitbart published Wednesday that alleged Reince Priebus might be on the outs. "The story is totally untrue. Reince is doing a great job. I couldn't ask any more from a partner," Bannon said. In a separate CNN interview, Bannon explained that creating a hostile environment toward the press was intentional and when asked if he had any desire to repair things with the press, he said: "I could care less."

Bannon has taken to lashing out at the media in person, too. "Reporters claim that Steve Bannon just walked by and insulted them," Mediaite reported Thursday:

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

And while press conferences might be unavoidable for the president, Trump has taken to answering questions solely from friendlier outlets; in his last three joint press conferences he only fielded inquiries from conservative outlets, Chris Cillizza pointed out. "This is how authoritarianism starts," former Obama aide Dan Pfeiffer replied.