CNN found itself defending one of its reporters Wednesday night after President Donald Trump publicly called for her firing.
The network said it stood “100% behind” reporter Natasha Bertrand after Trump attacked her on his Truth Social platform. The dispute started when Bertrand reported on a U.S. intelligence document about recent airstrikes on Iran’s nuclear facilities.
The controversy began when Bertrand, CNN’s national security correspondent, covered a Defense Intelligence Agency assessment. The report said the weekend strikes on Iran had only delayed the country’s nuclear program by a few months. This went against Trump’s claims that the facilities were “obliterated.” The New York Times also reported on the same intelligence document.
Trump responded with anger on Truth Social, saying Bertrand should be “IMMEDIATELY reprimanded, and then thrown out ‘like a dog.'” He also wrote “FIRE NATASHA!” in his post, continuing his pattern of social media outbursts. The president was upset that the intelligence report questioned his version of how successful the strikes were.
FBI launches investigation into intelligence leak
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio both spoke about the leaked document at a NATO summit press conference on Wednesday. They called the leak politically motivated and said the FBI was already investigating. Both officials criticized the release of the intelligence information.
— David VS Goliath (@AntiSin3) June 26, 2025
Donald J.Trump
Rumor is that the Failing New York Times and Fake News CNN will be firing the reporters who made up the FAKE stories on the Iran Nuclear sites because they got it so wrong. Lets see what happens?
CNN defended its reporter and said the story was in the public interest. The network noted that Bertrand’s report included proper warnings that the assessment was early and could change with more intelligence. CNN also said it had covered Trump’s doubts about the intelligence findings.
Jake Tapper, host of CNN’s “The Lead,” spent 10 minutes of his Wednesday show defending the network. He pushed back against Trump’s claims that CNN had “lied” in its reporting. Tapper defended both the network’s coverage and the work of its journalists. He said the reporting was accurate and properly sourced.
The dispute shows the ongoing tension between Trump and news organizations, with the president using his own social media platform to launch attacks. CNN said it would continue to report on matters of public interest despite the president’s attacks. The network emphasized that its reporter had followed proper journalism standards in covering the intelligence assessment.
