Trump reportedly soured on Bill Shine because he wasn't able to improve his press coverage

(Image credit: Mark Wilson / Getty Images)

published 8 March 2019

Bill Shine unexpectedly resigned as White House communications director on Friday, and now, the reason is coming into greater focus.

Numerous sources report that the relationship between Shine and President Trump deteriorated because the president was frustrated that he was failing to improve his press coverage. The Daily Beast writes that Trump has been complaining about this for months, with one source saying, "Trump loves a yes-man, but he loves good press more.”

Similarly, The New York Times reports that Trump "frequently criticized" Shine to his advisers because "his own press coverage had not improved." Trump also reportedly saw Shine as "ineffective" and "developing few ideas." The Washington Post backs this report up and writes that Shine's exit had to do with Trump being unhappy with his press coverage, and The Wall Street Journal says that Shine not being able to effectively deal with unfavorable news cycles led to Trump's "simmering frustration."

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CNN, meanwhile, reports that some people in the White House didn't even understand what it is that Shine did because "they did not believe that during his tenure in the White House that the communications strategy had changed all that much," per Mediaite. New York Magazine's Olivia Nuzzi writes that some feel Shine will be more influential from outside the White House, while another source told her there may have been something of a power struggle. "Bill's a boss, and in that building, there's only one boss," the source reportedly told Nuzzi.

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Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.

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