In his latest attack against the press on Thursday, President Donald Trump accused the New York Times and CNN of being “seditious” in their coverage of the Iran war, arguing that if those outlets are your main sources for news, you’d think Iran is “winning the war.”
“Everyday I read about how well they’re doing militarily,” Trump said to White House pool reporters in the Oval Office. But he maintained, “They’ve got nothing left. They’re done. And yet I read in the New York Times, I see on that stupid CNN — which I only watch because you have to watch a little bit of the enemy, so I watch it for a very short period, but … you have to be smart.
“If you see CNN, you’d think that they’re winning the war. If you read the New York Times — it’s actually seditious, in my opinion. You read the New York Times, you actually think they’re winning the war. I read some of these columnists, but it all starts from the top. It’s a terrible thing.”
It’s not the first time the president has accused the free press of publishing “fake news” that’s intended to stir animosity and rebellion against his administration. But it’s become an especially common talking point in the first 60 days of his war in Iran.
Donald Trump says any media outlets that don’t say the US is winning the war against Iran are traitorous:
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) April 30, 2026
“I read in the The New York Times, I see on that stupid CNN which I only watch because you have to watch a little bit of the enemy…If you see CNN, you’d think [Iran’s]… pic.twitter.com/qhgqHI1Cdt
Elsewhere in the comments to media, Trump said Thursday that Iran thinks “we’re crazy” for promoting such news and they know that they’re losing.
“They have no Navy, they have no airfare, they have no nothing. We can fly right over the middle of Tehran without being shot at because they have no anti-aircraft — they have nothing,” Trump said. “And they’re reading that they’re winning the war. They’re trying to figure out. They get the New York Times I guess, in some form. And they think we’re crazy.
“But you know, I’m supposed to be negotiating, and they make you negotiate from weakness, not strength, but the difference is I don’t care,” he continued. “And everybody knows the facts. We are decimating that country.”
PRESIDENT TRUMP: Iran has no navy, they have no air force, they have nothing.
— Department of State (@StateDept) April 30, 2026
We are decimating their country and yet the New York Times will tell you that they are winning the war. It’s ridiculous. pic.twitter.com/6dtimDQeF6
The president then claimed to have gotten a call from the leader of an unnamed Middle Eastern nation earlier Thursday, begging him to stop the war because it’s clear “they’re decimated.”
“‘Sir, please don’t hit them anymore, they’re decimated,’” Trump recalled the unnamed leader saying. “He’s actually helping them, he’s actually saying, ‘Please.’ And yet, the New York Times will tell you that they’re winning the war. It’s so sad. I hate to even say that because when I say that, people watching, they’ll say, ‘Oh, maybe they’ll win the war’ just by the fact that I’m saying it. And it’s so ridiculous.”
Communications teams for CNN and the New York Times had not responded to Trump’s criticism at the time of the publishing. Watch portions of the president’s statements in the videos above.
