CNN anchor Jake Tapper is under scrutiny after airing what he described as an “exclusive interview” with President Donald Trump — an exchange conducted entirely over text messages.
The segment aired on Sunday during State of the Union and featured Tapper reading short text responses from Trump while showing screenshots on screen.
The interaction was brief, consisting of fewer than a dozen sentences, and was criticized by many viewers for lacking depth or detail.
Tapper promoted the interview as an exclusive opportunity to hear directly from Trump on his ceasefire plan involving Hamas and ongoing discussions about the government shutdown.
Many who tuned in said they were left disappointed by the lack of substance and transparency, however.
Social media users quickly voiced their frustration, accusing Tapper of misleading viewers.
One user wrote on X, “These answers remind me of the Twilight Zone episode with [William] Shatner and the cafe fortune telling machine.”
“Vague, pre-printed, random one liners that could be answered to any question and apply.”
Another viewer added, “This was NOT an ‘interview.’ If you are just going to air his propaganda, have the human decency not to call it ‘exclusive interview.’”
A third user posted, “Jake is the worst thing that ever happened to journalism,”
Others mocked the exchange as a publicity stunt, noting that Trump’s responses—roughly 20 words or fewer each—offered little insight into U.S. foreign policy or the administration’s next steps, the Daily Mail outlined.
One commenter wrote, “All we learned was a vague threat of ‘Complete Obliteration!’ for Hamas. But we still don’t know exactly what he meant by that.”
Several users argued that Tapper’s decision to label the short exchange an “exclusive interview” damaged his credibility.
“Will forever be Tapper’s personal legacy that he conducted a nat’l media blitz concern tour about a different president,” one critic wrote.
Tapper, who has recently drawn attention for his own book on political cover-ups, has been promoting his latest publication, which alleges that high-ranking Democrats attempted to conceal former President Joe Biden’s cognitive decline while he was in office.
Tapper has said he and other members of the media were “duped” during that period.
In the text exchange, Tapper asked Trump several questions about the status of his ceasefire proposal between Israel and Hamas.
Trump responded to one question about Sen. Lindsey Graham’s (R-SC) statement that Hamas had already rejected the plan, writing, “We will find out. Only time will tell!!!”
Trump added that he expected to know “soon” whether Hamas was serious about peace.
When asked if Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu supported the proposal, Trump answered simply, “Yes.”
Tapper also asked whether the Arab League was backing the peace deal.
Trump replied, “I HOPE! Working hard.”
Some critics questioned why the CNN host would choose to conduct such an important interview via text message rather than on camera or by phone.
“So Donald Trump is in such bad condition that he can’t even do a telephone interview?” one viewer asked.
Another X user questioned the authenticity of the responses, writing, “What proof is there that it was actually Trump who was texting with Tapper?”
The Daily Mail further noted that others echoed similar doubts, suggesting that the format left open the possibility that staff members or aides could have sent the replies.
“Why wouldn’t Trump do a phone interview? It could have been anyone responding to Jake’s text questions. Is @jaketapper so naïve as to believe it was Trump?” another wrote.
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