Katie Zacharia leaves White House press secretary role after a week-long, rocky tenure

What was reported

Katie Zacharia is leaving her job as White House press secretary, a week after President Donald Trump announced her appointment, according to reports on Friday 16 October. Outlets have described her time in the post as "five days", "less than five days" or "less than a week". That depends on whether it is counted from her announcement on 9 October, her first working day, or her first briefing on 13 October.

Trump had suggested the departure earlier on Friday. He told reporters that he had said to Zacharia "you don't have to do this if you don't want to" and, according to the BBC, that "honestly, if I were you, I'd reconsider". NBC News quoted him saying he would let her make that decision. Hours later, Zacharia said in a statement that it "was an honor to work for" the president.

How she left is described differently

AP and the BBC report that she is leaving the post. NBC News reported that she is "out" and quoted a senior administration official as saying she is transitioning into a new role that will be announced later. The Guardian described it as a firing. This article does not take a side. The accounts come from unnamed officials, and the sources we reviewed contain no detailed on-record explanation from the White House.

The first week

Zacharia gave her first briefing on Tuesday 13 October. NBC and the BBC reported that it lasted less than 15 minutes and that she took only a few questions. The BBC reported that she took three. The briefing was widely criticised.

In the following days, she faced questions about her legal credentials. According to the BBC, she had been described as an attorney by Trump and others, and she acknowledged on Thursday that she did not pass the bar exam. She said in a statement that she had practised international transaction law in China with the "appropriate credentials". NBC reported that a watchdog group had asked the State Bar of California to investigate how she described herself. We report this as a complaint, not a finding.

Background

Before the appointment, Zacharia was a commentator on conservative media and had worked as a communications adviser for Trump Media & Technology Group, according to NBC and, citing her LinkedIn profile, the BBC. She succeeded Karoline Leavitt, who left the post at the end of August after serving since the start of Trump's term in January 2025.

The role is now vacant again. The departure comes less than three weeks before the US midterm elections, NBC reported.