Why Trump’s latest White House press secretary lasted just five days

Katie Zacharia's brief tenure as White House press secretary ends in record time.

The full report

Katie Zacharia has become the shortest-serving White House press secretary after a rocky tenure, lasting just five days on the job. According to Al Jazeera, Zacharia's departure came amid mounting concerns about her competency and professional background.

During her first and only news conference on Tuesday, Zacharia appeared uneasy at the podium and struggled at times to get through her sentences. She fumbled her words while looking down at her notes, once confused the words 'husband' and 'president' and ended the briefing after 14 minutes, taking only three questions from reporters.

Scrutiny intensified after it emerged that Zacharia, who has a law degree and described herself as 'an attorney', had studied law at university but never passed the bar exam required to practice law in the US. She later claimed she had worked as a lawyer in China.

Conservative Fox News host Sean Hannity asked Zacharia during an awkward interview on Thursday: 'Why didn't you just say: 'I never practised law'?' Zacharia's response to this question is not mentioned in the provided evidence.

Zacharia's departure has sparked a new unit of time – 'one Zacharia' – which is half as long as the previous record held by Anthony Scaramucci, who was fired after 10 days on the job during Trump's first term in office in 2017.

Trump told reporters on Friday that he believed the press had been harsh towards his new top spokesperson, Katie Zacharia, but that he had advised her to 'reconsider' the role. Shortly after, Al Jazeera and other media confirmed that Zacharia would be 'transitioning out' of the position.