The publisher of The New York Times said today he has warned US President Donald Trump that his attacks on the press were "dangerous and harmful to our country".
A.G. Sulzberger commented on a meeting at the White House on 20 July after Mr Trump tweeted today that they had "spent much time talking about the vast amounts of Fake News being put out by the media & how that Fake News has morphed into phrase, 'Enemy of the People.' Sad!"
Had a very good and interesting meeting at the White House with A.G. Sulzberger, Publisher of the New York Times. Spent much time talking about the vast amounts of Fake News being put out by the media & how that Fake News has morphed into phrase, "Enemy of the People." Sad!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 29, 2018
Mr Sulzberger said he had accepted the meeting to raise concerns about the president's "deeply troubling anti-press rhetoric" and implored him "to reconsider his broader attacks on journalism, which I believe are dangerous and harmful to our country".
In a statement published by the New York Times after Mr Trump's tweet, Mr Sulzberger said: "I told him that although the phrase 'fake news' is untrue and harmful, I am far more concerned about his labeling journalists 'the enemy of the people'. I warned that this inflammatory language is contributing to a rise in threats against journalists and will lead to violence."
He said: "Throughout the conversation I emphasised that if President Trump, like previous presidents, was upset with coverage of his administration he was of course free to tell the world.
"I made clear repeatedly that I was not asking for him to soften his attacks on The Times if he felt our coverage was unfair. Instead, I implored him to reconsider his broader attacks on journalism, which I believe are dangerous and harmful to our country."
