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Who could replace Katie Zacharia as White House press secretary?

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Cite

Baio, A., & Popat, S. (2026, October 16). Who could replace Katie Zacharia as White House press secretary? The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026/oct/16/who-replace-katie-zacharia-white-house-press-secretary

Dated from the outlet's own feed. Check the original for its byline.

The Guardian · collected 2026-10-16 · by Ariana Baio, Shrai Popat

Quick Summary

The White House is seeking a new press secretary after Katie Zacharia’s abrupt departure just five days into her role. Potential candidates being considered include Stephen Cheung, currently the communications director; Anna Kelly, serving as deputy press secretary; Katie Miller, wife of top aide Stephen Miller and influential conservative podcast host; Taylor Budowich, former White House deputy chief of staff turned private sector executive; and Scott Jennings, a frequent Trump defender on television. The article details their background and current roles within the administration or related political spheres.
Written by AI on 2026-10-16, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On October 18, 2026, Katie Zacharia resigned just five days after being appointed as the White House Press Secretary by President Donald Trump, following a series of controversial appearances and poor performances during interviews on Fox News. Her short tenure raised questions about the role's relevance in an administration where the president often communicates directly with the media and public.

Zacharia had been selected to replace Karoline Leavitt, who left the position at the end of August after the birth of her second child. Prior to this role, Zacharia worked as a communications advisor for Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), which owns Truth Social, and previously served briefly as a spokesperson at the Department of Homeland Security.

Text messages obtained by The New York Post revealed that Zacharia herself had pushed for the contentious interviews that led to her departure. These appearances included awkward interactions with Fox News hosts Sean Hannity and "Fox & Friends," where she struggled to answer questions about her qualifications, including not passing the California bar exam.

The incident has sparked debate about the importance of the press secretary role in an administration where direct presidential communication is frequent, highlighting a broader dilemma for how the White House manages media relations.

Written for “Katie Zacharia Hired As Press Secretary” on 2026-11-03, grounded in this article and the 120 other(s) covering the same event.

Story

📰 Katie Zacharia Hired As Press Secretary
Politics · 121 article(s) covering the same event. Compare every outlet's account →

Compared with similar articles

This article reads unscored and hedges 4% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.
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“The articles discuss potential replacements after Katie Zacharia's exit but do not describe the same specific incident or occurrence.”
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“Article A describes Zacharia's first briefing, while Article B discusses potential replacements after her departure.”
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Hedges 6 of 40 claims Outlet record 77/100
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⚖️ Centre Hedges 0 of 3 claims Outlet record 70/100
“Article A describes Katie Zacharia's debut briefing, while Article B discusses potential replacements after her departure, which are different events.”
Trump's new press secretary leaves after less than a week following controversy Different event
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⚖️ Leans right Hedges 1 of 14 claims Outlet record 60/100
“Article A reports on Zacharia leaving her role immediately after a controversy, while Article B discusses potential replacements for Zacharia's position.”
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The Independent
Hedges 5 of 16 claims Outlet record 59/100
“The articles discuss potential replacements for Katie Zacharia after her short stint as White House press secretary but describe different aspects of the situation and do not refer to a single specific occurrence.”
How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

Signals How these are calculated →

Claims extracted
23
sentences that state something as happening or true
Uncertain
4%
1 of 23 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")
Leaning
not political
takes no side on a contested political question
Publisher signals
66/100
The Guardian's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.
Outlets on this story
121
Politics
Same framing elsewhere
1
articles that frame the event the way this one does
Analyzed 2026-10-16 · how these are computed

How this is being covered How these are calculated →

Article leaning vs. publisher reliability
Source leaning vs. consistency

Publisher

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Who wrote this

Ariana Baio
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Topics

Air Force One Getty ImagesCheung Newsmax The White House White House

Subjects

White House ORG · 9× Leavitt PERSON · 7× Trump PERSON · 5× Habba PERSON · 3× Katie PERSON · 3× The White House ORG · 3× Anna Kelly PERSON · 2× Katie Miller PERSON · 2× Stephen Miller PERSON · 2× Zacharia PERSON · 2×

Narrative

Alongside Leavitt, Budowich was one of the defendants in the case brought by the Associated Press after the outlet was banned from the press rotation for refusing to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America”.
framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-10-16
2026-10-16 · The Guardian
Who could replace Katie Zacharia as White House press secretary? · assertive framing

Claims (23 extracted, 1 hedged)

Zacharia’s departure comes just months after Karoline Leavitt unexpectedly resigned as the White House press secretary to focus on her family. asserted
Leavitt → come → family
Once again, a sharp-elbowed race inside Trump’s world to take on one of the most prominent positions in the administration has kicked off. asserted
race → elbow → administration
White House communications director Steven Cheung looks on as Donald Trump walks off Air Force One at the Lehigh valley international airport on 1 August 2025. asserted
Trump → look → August
Getty ImagesCheung currently serves as the White House communications director, and has worked closely with Leavitt throughout the second Trump administration. asserted
ImagesCheung → serve → administration
When he praised the outgoing press secretary for her tenure on Wednesday, Leavitt joked on social media that the pair had survived “many, many news cycles” together. asserted
pair → praise → cycles
Anna Kelly White House deputy press secretary Anna Kelly holds an interview with Newsmax at the White House on 16 September. asserted
Kelly → hold → September
She was previously a spokesperson for Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, and before that, she served as national press secretary for the Republican National Committee. asserted
she → serve → Committee
Katie Miller White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller and his wife, Katie, arrive for UFC Freedom 250 at the White House on 14 June. asserted
Miller → arrive → June
, Katie Miller has a front row seat to the administration’s movements. asserted
Miller → have → movements
And as an influential conservative podcast host, Katie has spent a lot of time interviewing cabinet officials and rightwing media figures. asserted
Katie → spend → officials
Before launching her podcast, Katie was a communications director for the so-called “department of government efficiency” (Doge). asserted
Katie → launch → efficiency
APBudowich is a former White House deputy chief of staff, who worked alongside Miller and Dan Scavino. asserted
who → work → Miller
He left the White House last year to join the private sector. asserted
He → leave → sector
Alongside Leavitt, Budowich was one of the defendants in the case brought by the Associated Press after the outlet was banned from the press rotation for refusing to refer to the Gulf of Mexico as the “Gulf of America”. asserted
outlet → bring → America
Conservative commentator Scott Jennings speaks at the Ashley’s BBQ Bash fundraiser hosted by Republican congresswoman Ashley Hinson on 23 August 2025 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. asserted
Jennings → speak → Rapids
is a longtime conservative commentator and Trump ally who often defends the president and members of his administration on network television and online. asserted
who → defend → television
He now serves as an on-air political contributor on CNN. asserted
He → serve → CNN
Jennings was rumored to be in the running to replace Leavitt but ultimately passed over for Zacharia. asserted
Jennings → rumor → Zacharia
Alina Habba speaks to the media outside the White House on 24 March 2025. asserted
Habba → speak → March
EPAHabba is a loyal ally of the president who served as his personal lawyer before becoming a short-lived US attorney for New Jersey. asserted
who → serve → Jersey
A federal judge ultimately ruled her appointment was unlawful. asserted
appointment → rule → ?
According to the New York Post, citing sources within the administration, Habba was an early frontrunner to replace Leavitt. uncertain
Habba → accord → Leavitt
But Habba dismissed those rumors in August , saying she was not in the running for Leavitt’s job. asserted
she → dismiss → job
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