Latest news with #Bertrand
Yahoo
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Leavitt attacks CNN reporter for Iran intel leak story
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt attacked CNN reporter Natasha Bertrand in response to her reporting on leaked intelligence relating to U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities last weekend. 'This reporter wrote a lie from the intelligence community to seek a narrative she wanted to prove,' Leavitt said of Bertrand, calling her out by name during a briefing with reporters Thursday. 'This is a reporter who has been used by people who dislike Donald Trump in this government to push fake and false narratives.' Leavitt's criticism of the reporter came a day after President Trump called for her firing and accused her of 'attempting to destroy our Patriot Pilots by making them look bad.' CNN issued a statement Wednesday defending Bertrand and saying it 'does not believe it is reasonable to criticize CNN reporters for accurately reporting the existence of the assessment and accurately characterizing its findings, which are in the public interest.' Jake Tapper, a top anchor at the network, also defended Bertrand. 'President Trump and his administration are going after shooting the messengers in an increasingly ugly way,' he said. The White House has sought discredit the leaked intelligence, which suggested the Saturday strikes only set Iran's nuclear program back by a few months. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
26-06-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Leavitt attacks CNN reporter for Iran intel leak story
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt attacked CNN reporter Natasha Bertrand in response to her reporting on leaked intelligence relating to U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities last weekend. 'This reporter wrote a lie from the intelligence community to seek a narrative she wanted to prove,' Leavitt said of Bertrand, calling her out by name during a briefing with reporters on Thursday. 'This is a reporter who has been used by people who dislike Donald Trump in this government to push fake and false narratives.' Leavitt's criticism of the reporter came a day after President Trump called for her firing and accused her of 'attempting to destroy our Patriot Pilots by making them look bad.' CNN issued a statement on Wednesday defending Bertrand and saying it 'does not believe it is reasonable to criticize CNN reporters for accurately reporting the existence of the assessment and accurately characterizing its findings, which are in the public interest.' Jake Tapper, a top anchor at the network, also defended Bertrand. 'President Trump and his administration are going after shooting the messengers in an increasingly ugly way,' he said. The White House has sought discredit the leaked intelligence, which suggested the Saturday strikes only set Iran's nuclear program back by a few months.
Mint
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Mint
'Should be fired': Donald Trump blasts CNN's Natasha Bertrand over Iran strike report, network backs journalist
US President Donald Trump has launched a scathing attack on CNN journalist Natasha Bertrand, accusing her of spreading 'fake news' over her reporting on US airstrikes targeting Iran's nuclear facilities. In a post on Truth Social, the president went so far as to demand that Bertrand be 'fired' and 'thrown out like a dog'. Bertrand was among the reporters who covered early intelligence assessments suggesting that the strikes may not have caused as much damage as initially claimed. Donald Trump, however, called her report a 'lie' and said it undermined the US military's success. 'Natasha Bertrand should be FIRED from CNN! I watched her for three days doing Fake News. She should be IMMEDIATELY reprimanded, and then thrown out 'like a dog,'' Trump wrote. 'She lied on the Laptop from Hell Story, and now she lied on the Nuclear Sites Story, attempting to destroy our Patriot Pilots… TOTAL OBLITERATION!' Trump further wrote, 'It's people like her who destroyed the reputation of a once great Network. Her slant was so obviously negative… FIRE NATASHA!' CNN swiftly came to Bertrand's defence. In a statement shared on X (formerly Twitter), the network said: 'We stand 100% behind Natasha Bertrand's journalism and specifically her and her colleagues' reporting of the early intelligence assessment of the US attack on Iran's nuclear facilities. CNN's reporting made clear that this was an initial finding that could change with additional intelligence.' The channel emphasised that Bertrand's reporting was accurate and responsible: 'We do not believe it is reasonable to criticise CNN reporters for accurately reporting the existence of the assessment and accurately characterising its findings, which are in the public interest.' Natasha Bertrand is a national security correspondent for CNN and has previously reported for Politico and The Atlantic. She has been a frequent target of criticism from conservative leaders due to her reporting on intelligence matters and investigations related to the Trump administration.
Sky News AU
26-06-2025
- Politics
- Sky News AU
'Fire Natasha': Trump lashes out at CNN journalist for 'fake news' reporting on Iran's nuclear sites, calls on her to be immediately reprimanded
President Donald Trump has lashed out at prominent media outlets this week for producing conflicting reports on the extent of damage to Iran's key nuclear sites that were struck by the US military on Sunday. The President took aim at CNN and the New York Times for publishing stories on preliminary classified findings from the US Defense Intelligence Agency, which reportedly indicated the US strikes only set back Iran's nuclear program a few months. CNN was the first news outlet to break the story on Tuesday which heavily contradicted Trump's previous statement claiming Iran's nuclear facilities were 'obliterated'. He labelled NYT reporters "bad and sick people" for downplaying the US military's efforts, but he singled out CNN reporter Natasha Bertrand for her ''fake'' coverage on the topic. Trump angrily took to his Truth Social platform to rubbish the media claims and called on Ms Bertrand to be "immediately reprimanded, then thrown out 'like a dog.''' "I watched her for three days doing Fake News,' the President wrote. 'She should be immediately reprimanded, then thrown out 'like a dog.'' The President then put another article by Ms Bertrand under the microscope and accused her of lying and attempting to "destroy our patriot pilots" in a story titled "Early US intel assessment suggests strikes on Iran did not destroy nuclear sites". "It's people like her who destroyed the reputation of a once great Network," he wrote in a post. "Her slant was so obviously negative, besides, she doesn't have what it takes to be an on camera correspondent, not even close. FIRE NATASHA!" CNN released a statement disputing the President's allegations and stood by Ms Bertrand for her accurate reporting. "We stand 100 per cent behind Natasha Bertrand's journalism and specifically her and her colleagues' reporting of the early intelligence assessment of the US attack on Iran's nuclear facilities," the network wrote in a statement. 'We do not believe it is reasonable to criticize CNN reporters for accurately reporting the existence of the assessment and accurately characterizing its findings, which are in the public interest." The network also made clear its story was a preliminary finding that could change with additional intelligence and highlighted Trump's "own deep skepticism about it". The White House addressed the CNN reports and labelled parts of the early defence agency report an 'inconclusive, low-confidence intelligence assessment' that was leaked to downplay Trump and those involved in the mission. "Everyone knows what happens when you drop fourteen 30,000-pound bombs perfectly on their targets: Total Obliteration,' the White House said.
The Herald Scotland
26-06-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
CNN slams Trump for criticizing reporter as tensions escalate
"She lied on the Laptop from Hell Story, and now she lied on the Nuclear Sites Story, attempting to destroy our Patriot Pilots by making them look bad when, in fact, they did a GREAT job and hit 'pay dirt' -- TOTAL OBLITERATION!" Trump said in the post. The president's comments come as Bertrand and CNN reported June 25 that the U.S. strikes on three of Iran's nuclear facilities last weekend did not destroy the country's nuclear program. Instead, they reported that it simply set the country's capabilities back by months. It appears that Trump's "laptop from hell" comments were referring to Bertrand's 2020 story for Politico that suggested that the laptop controversy surrounding former President Joe Biden's son, Hunter Biden, was a case of Russian disinformation. While unleashing against the network in his comments, Trump said Bertrand "should not be allowed to work at Fake News CNN." "It's people like her who destroyed the reputation of a once great Network. Her slant was so obviously negative, besides, she doesn't have what it takes to be an on camera correspondent, not even close. FIRE NATASHA!" Trump continued. But CNN pushed back on Trump's claims, defending Bertrand, her reporting and the network's talent roster. "We stand 100% behind Natasha Bertand's journalism and specifically her and her colleagues' reporting of the U.S. attack on Iran's nuclear facilities," the company's PR team wrote in a statement posted to X on June 25. "CNN's reporting made clear that this was an initial finding that could change with additional intelligence." 'Allison Cooper': Trump calls CNN anchor Anderson Cooper 'Allison' in rant "We have extensively covered President Trump's own deep skepticism about it," the network said. "However, we do not believe it is reasonable to criticize CNN reporters for accurately reporting the existence of the assessment and accurately characterizing its findings, which are in the public interest." Before she joined CNN in April 2021, Bertrand covered national security and politics for two years at Politico. Previously, she covered the same beat at The Atlantic and Business Insider. Kaitlan Collins, CNN star and frequent Trump adversary, will cover White House for network Donald Trump called CNN's Anderson Cooper 'Allison' As CNN has attempted to neutralize its coverage of Trump during his second term, the president himself has ramped up his attacks on the network's reporting staff in recent weeks. On June 23, Trump unleashed on CNN's star anchor Anderson Cooper. Trump lashed out on Truth Social, calling the "AC360" host "Allison Cooper" and slamming what he referred to as "fake news" organizations that "would say anything different in order to try and demean, as much as possible" in their stories about U.S. strikes on Iranian nuclear sites. In his post, Trump also slammed "Dumb Brian L. Roberts, Chairman of 'Con'cast, Jonny Karl of ABC Fake News, and always, the Losers of, again, Concast's NBC Fake News," referring to Comcast chairman Roberts and ABC News' chief Washington correspondent Jonathan Karl.
