President Trump has apparently been taking his complaints about Fox News all the way to the top.
Trump in recent months has repeatedly railed against his once-beloved news network, and The Atlantic reports on Monday that "on occasions when he's unhappy with the network's coverage, Trump will pick up the phone and call [Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott] to complain." These calls, the report says, "don't tend to go well."
That's because Fox News executives reportedly couldn't care less about Trump's attacks on the network, with the thinking being that he needs them far more than they need him, and they have the "leverage" in this relationship. "I'm not sure she tells him what he wants to hear," one source told The Atlantic of Trump's calls with Scott.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
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.
Trump has targeted Fox News for various reasons in recent months, including the network's polls showing him losing to 2020 Democrats and its hiring of former Democratic National Committee Chair Donna Brazile as a contributor. In his latest escalation, the president last month complained after a Fox News interview with the DNC's communications director that the network "isn't working for us anymore," telling his supporters "we have to start looking for a new news outlet."
But one source told The Atlantic that Scott, who has reportedly expressed horror privately at some of Trump's words and actions, doesn't seem "at all concerned," in part because Fox News knows "there's nowhere else for their audience to go."
-
Political cartoons for November 29Cartoons Saturday's political cartoons include Kash Patel's travel perks, believing in Congress, and more
-
Nigel Farage: was he a teenage racist?Talking Point Farage’s denials have been ‘slippery’, but should claims from Reform leader’s schooldays be on the news agenda?
-
Pushing for peace: is Trump appeasing Moscow?In Depth European leaders succeeded in bringing themselves in from the cold and softening Moscow’s terms, but Kyiv still faces an unenviable choice
-
Could Trump run for a third term?The Explainer Constitutional amendment limits US presidents to two terms, but Trump diehards claim there is a loophole
-
Trump’s Ukraine peace talks advance amid leaked callSpeed Read Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff is set to visit Russia next week
-
Memo signals Trump review of 233k refugeesSpeed Read The memo also ordered all green card applications for the refugees to be halted
-
Judge tosses Trump DOJ cases against Comey, JamesSpeed Read Both cases could potentially be brought again
-
X’s location update exposes international troll industryIn the Spotlight Social media platform’s new transparency feature reveals ‘scope and geographical breadth’ of accounts spreading misinformation
-
Tariffs: Will Trump’s reversal lower prices?Feature Retailers may not pass on the savings from tariff reductions to consumers
-
Trump: Is he losing control of MAGA?Feature We may be seeing the ‘first meaningful right-wing rebellion against autocracy of this era’
-
Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein: a TimelineIN DEPTH The alleged relationship between deceased sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein and Donald Trump has become one of the most acute threats to the president’s power
