Trump blasts 'illegal' media in fiery speech, labels outlets critical of him 'political arms of Democrat party'

US President Donald Trump on Friday (Mar 14) launched a scathing attack on the press and his political adversaries, turning a speech at the Department of Justice (DOJ) into a grievance-laden tirade.

Using the speech which was meant to discuss law and order, Trump—now the first convicted felon to hold the White House—railed against perceived injustices, accusing his predecessor Joe Biden of "weaponising" the department against him. But his harshest words were reserved for the media, especially those US outlets that cover him critically and which he claimed were "corrupt".

Speaking before an audience of prosecutors and law enforcement officers, Trump lashed out at major news outlets, singling out CNN, MSNBC, and unnamed newspapers for their critical coverage. 

He claimed that they "literally write 97.6 percent bad about me" and said that "it has to stop. It has to be illegal."

He went further, calling them "political arms of the Democrat party," and branding their coverage "corrupt" and "illegal."

"In my opinion, they're really corrupt and they're illegal. What they do is illegal," he said.

He alleged that media is "influencing judges and it's really changing law, and it just cannot be legal. I don't believe it's legal. And they do it in total coordination with each other".

Attacking the media has been a hallmark of Trump's political career, dating back to his first election in 2016. He has frequently labelled journalists as "enemies of the people" and dismissed reports critical of him as "fake news."

Since beginning his second term in January, he has moved swiftly to sideline mainstream outlets like The Associated Press while granting increased access to far-right media organisations. The Associated Press was blocked from accessing White House events, including the vital Donald Trump-Indian PM Narendra Modi joint press conference in February 2025. This happened after the news agency failed to comply with Trump's order renaming the Gulf of Mexico as the Gulf of America.