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Washington D.C. — On June 30, 2025, Donald Trump’s publicly-traded company, Trump Media & Technology Group, announced a partnership with the right-wing news organization Newsmax, creating a major conflict of interest within the White House press corps. Today, government watchdog Accountable.US urged the White House Correspondents’ Association to prohibit any Newsmax reporter from serving as a reporter on any White House press pool assignment during the rest of this administration. 

“So long as President Trump’s media company maintains a lucrative business partnership with Newsmax, under no circumstances should a Newsmax reporter be the primary conduit of information detailing official White House activity,” said Accountable.US Executive Director Tony Carrk. “Why should anyone believe Newsmax would ever put the public interest above their profit motive under this corrupt dynamic? There’s never been a clearer cause for the White House Correspondents’ Association to step in to protect against further erosion of the freedom of the press and help restore people’s trust in the news media.” 

BACKGROUND: 

  • The Donald Trump Revocable Trust is the majority shareholder of Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG); Trump holds a 52% stake valued at approximately $2 billion. After his election, Trump indicated he would not step away from the company, setting the stage for major conflicts of interest, telling Meet The Press:  “Well, I don’t know how I can divest. What does that mean? I’m not allowed to open it and use it?”

  • On June 30, 2025, TMTG announced in an 8-K filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that the company would be launching its “Truth+” social media and video streaming service on a global platform. The launch would also make “the flagship Newsmax channel available in international markets without the need for a VPN”, signaling a partnership between the president’s business interests and a news outlet tasked with covering his administration.

  • Newsmax is one of the most extreme media organizations in the United States. The outlet gained a following among hard-core Trump supporters after the 2020 election when it would not initially acknowledge Joe Biden’s victory, something Trump himself repeatedly insisted on without evidence despite over 60 court cases that failed to remotely prove any widespread voter fraud.

  • Newsmax is also funded in part by Qatar with the network receiving a $50 million investment from a member of the Qatari royal family in 2019 and 2020, after which the outlet softened its news coverage of the country.

  • Trump has proved to be especially hostile to mainstream media outlets, and earlier this year, he banned the Associated Press from the White House press pool and his press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, took control over who would be admitted to the pool. In June, following the strikes on Iran, Trump and other members of his administration attacked members of the media for their coverage of the event, even going so far as to call CNN and the New York Times “BAD PEOPLE WITH EVIL INTENTIONS.”

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