Edited by: Amelia Cantwell and Rishi Chandra
“Quiet, piggy” is not a phrase one would expect to hear from the commander in chief. Yet, it is just one of the many insults hurled at female journalists by Donald Trump. His behavior is dangerous and downright embarrassing. The longer his blatant misogyny goes unchecked, the more normalized it becomes.
As the unofficial “fourth branch of government,” the press plays an essential role in U.S. democracy. By promoting transparency and accountability, journalists serve as conduits between the government and the governed. Trump’s rhetoric fosters a toxic environment that threatens to erode this vital relationship.
Trump’s brash demeanor is nothing new. He spars with male journalists too, but his treatment of female members of the press reaches another level of disrespect. With men, Trump mainly criticizes their competence. With women, his insults typically consist of childish name-calling, attacks on their physical appearance, and disparaging comments about their professional capabilities. To simply do their jobs, women in the press corps must possess enough grit to withstand gendered harassment.
CNN’s Chief White House Correspondent Kaitlan Collins is no stranger to Trump’s temper tantrums. He frequently singles her out. In Dec. 2025, he called her “stupid and nasty.” On Feb. 3, he took a swipe at her for not smiling enough. During that run-in, Collins was pressing Trump on the Jeffrey Epstein files. On The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, Collins addressed the incident, stating, “I think a lot of women can identify with that moment and that feeling…I don’t think it’s a controversial opinion that you shouldn’t smile when you’re asking questions about a sex trafficker and sexual assault victims.” By demanding that Collins put on a happy face, Trump channeled his frustration into aggressive deflection. On June 3, he accused her of “having hatred in her eyes.” At the 2026 White House Correspondents’ Dinner, Trump’s vindictiveness was on full display. The White House Correspondents’ Association presented Collins with “The Award for Excellence in Presidential News Coverage Under Deadline Pressure.” Trump claimed her award “was all about me. It’s a fake. She shouldn’t get the award.” Next, he called her a “young, attractive woman” and reiterated his go-to phrase, saying, “You should be a happy person. Just smile, Kaitlan.” In typical Trump style, his speech attacked Collins professionally and then pivoted to her appearance.
Although Trump’s outbursts might seem erratic, his remarks reveal a key pattern in his behavior. He visibly bristles when female members of the press stand up to him and tries to defend himself by treating them as inferiors. He often resorts to name-calling and intimidation as methods of distraction. By needlessly bashing female journalists’ physical traits and questioning their intellect, his actions exhibit signs of male chauvinism.
This pattern is not unique to his interactions with Collins. On Air Force One, Bloomberg’s Catherine Lucey pressed him about his ties to Epstein. Trump’s snide reply? “Quiet. Quiet, piggy.” The President of the United States looked her in the eye, pointed at her, and called her a pig. As much as Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt would like us to believe, that is not frankness; it is dehumanization.
This viral remark from Nov. 2025 stands out as another prime example of his technique to distract and demean, especially when asked about the Epstein files. In spite of intense backlash, the White House doubled down. Trump’s unwillingness to apologize—despite the egregiousness of this offense—is unsurprising. However, by refusing to hold their leader accountable, the majority of the Republican Party is complicit. Their silence enables Trump and contributes to the normalization of his misogyny.
Shortly after his abusive comments towards Lucey, Trump targeted Katie Rogers over her contributions to a New York Times story titled, “Shorter Days, Signs of Fatigue: Trump Faces Realities of Aging in Office,” which drew attention to his apparent lack of stamina. In a classic example of his childish approach, Trump criticized Rogers personally and professionally, calling her “a third-rate reporter…ugly inside and out.” Notably, he spared Rogers’ male co-writer, Dylan Freedman, from any such attack. In 2020, Trump hurled the same “third-rate reporter” insult at ABC’s Jonathan Karl, with one glaring difference: he refrained from saying anything about Karl’s appearance or his character. He focused solely on professional competence.
Moreover, during a tense exchange on Sept. 10, Trump appeared to lunge at Senior Political Correspondent Rachel Scott from ABC News. She pressed him about his pledge to reward every American with $5,000 if the GOP maintains their control over Congress in the midterm elections. Trump interrupted her, stating “Not you … Your network and you, you’re the worst.” Previously on May 7, Trump called Scott a “horror show.”
After Kristen Welker challenged the factuality of Trump’s claims in a June 5 interview, Trump launched into a tantrum. He insultingly called Welker “darling,” and remarked that she, her show “Meet the Press,” and her network, NBC, were “crooked” before he abruptly ended the conversation and stormed out.
On May 12, MS NOW reporter Akayla Gardner challenged Trump on the rising cost of his ballroom renovations. He became defensive and lashed out, stating, “you dumb person…you are not a smart person.” On March 16, Trump dubbed New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman “Maggot” and called her a “SLEAZEBAG writer.” On March 11, he called PBS correspondent Liz Landers a “rotten reporter” after she contradicted his election fraud lies. In Nov. 2025, he referred to ABC News’ Chief White House Correspondent, Mary Bruce, as a “terrible person and a terrible reporter.”
Trump’s verbal abuse towards female journalists began years before he entered politics. In 2011, Trump clashed with New York Times columnist Gail Collins. She wrote an opinion piece titled, “Donald Trump Gets Weirder,” to which Trump responded, “Least talented of all is frumpy Gail Collins.” According to Collins, Trump mailed her a copy of the article with annotations referring to her as a “dog” and claiming she had “the face of a pig.”
Kaitlan Collins. Catherine Lucey. Katie Rogers. Rachel Scott. Kristen Welker. Akayla Gardner. Maggie Haberman. Liz Landers. Mary Bruce. Gail Collins. This list barely scratches the surface. Time and time again, Trump’s mistreatment of women proves that his character is unbefitting the office of the presidency. As the leader of our country, Trump wields significant influence. The longer his blatant misogyny goes unchecked, the more normalized it becomes. Young Americans should not grow up thinking this rhetoric is acceptable. We must hold the president of the United States to a much higher standard.
Boycotts or walk-outs might seem like plausible solutions. However, such tactics are tedious and risky, especially given Trump’s history of retaliation. In July 2018, Trump blocked Kaitlan Collins from attending an event in the White House Rose Garden simply because her questions aggravated him. In Nov. 2018, former CNN reporter Jim Acosta had his credentials revoked after a viral run-in with Trump. His access was eventually restored via court order. Importantly, Collins and Acosta did not stage protests. They were punished simply for doing their jobs.
What if journalists who challenge Trump are repeatedly barred from the White House Press Corps? In Feb. 2025, the White House banned the Associated Press (AP) from the Oval Office and Air Force One after the AP continued using the term “Gulf of Mexico” following Trump's decision to rename it the “Gulf of America.” Similarly, in July 2025, the Wall Street Journal lost press pool travel privileges after reporting on Trump’s crude birthday letter to Epstein. Would networks risk losing front-row access to the White House, even temporarily, if they take a stand against Trump?
In Dec. 2025, the White House launched an “Offender Hall of Shame,” which features media outlets that Trump reviles. By labeling members of the press as “Repeat Offenders,” and naming a “Media Offender of the Week,” this website illustrates Trump’s efforts to vilify journalists and delegitimize any who oppose him.
On Sept. 18, Trump escalated his conflict with the press by banning CNN, POLITICO, and MS NOW from the White House. On Sept. 19, MS NOW’s Akayla Gardner and CNN’s Betsy Klein were denied access and told to relinquish their badges. If Trump’s amplified aggression towards the First Amendment is not confronted, we risk having to settle for skewed media coverage that fails to hold this administration accountable.
Although drastic measures might backfire, the status quo is unacceptable. Trump’s efforts to stifle freedom of the press violate our democratic principles. The unseemly behavior currently on display in the Oval Office sets a dangerous precedent. We cannot—and should not—expect female journalists to just grin and bear it. Without letting these moments trample the news cycle, we must call out his behavior publicly, document it, and set the record straight with facts. We cannot allow Trump to give a masterclass on misogyny from the bully pulpit.