PBS News White House correspondent Liz Landers reported on social media about her phone conversation on Monday with President Trump — and in a rare display of praise for the mainstream media, White House Communications Director Steven Cheung lauded Landers’ coverage.
Cheung wrote: “Everyone should read this entire thread. It’s great because it’s just President Trump’s own words and messaging without opinion or fake news fluff. Kudos!”
Everyone should read this entire thread. It’s great because it’s just President Trump’s own words and messaging without opinion or fake news fluff. Kudos! https://t.co/uDB8C1x9rr
— Steven Cheung (@StevenCheung47) March 16, 2026
Landers reported in a long thread that she had asked several questions about Iran and that Trump said “we’re doing very well,” and that Iran wants “to want to make a deal but they’re not ready to make a deal in my opinion.”
After asking about Kharg Island, Landers quoted the President saying: “I left a lot of infrastructure in Tehran because if you did it, it’s years of building…I could knock out the electric plants in one hour… but if I do that, that’s years of rebuilding and it’s trauma. So I’m trying to hold off on that kind of thing.”
At the end of the thread, Landers noted that when she introduced herself as a reporter from PBS News, “the president commented that I do a ‘good job’ but could be a ‘little more conservative but that’s okay.’”
Note: Trump signed an executive order in May 2025 to stop federal funding for public media outlets including PBS and NPR, calling them a “waste of money” and alleging a liberal bias in their coverage. The Republican-controlled Congress eliminated funding for both in July. In January, PBS News Weekend aired its final broadcast.