Donald J.Trump brands New York Times Iran coverage “treasonous,” threatens lawsuit

attacked the newspaper over its war analysis and vowed to add the reporting to his existing multibillion-dollar legal claim against the Times.

TrumpWorld

IRAN — Donald J.Trump called The New York Times coverage of the Iran conflict “treasonous” in a Truth Social post on June 22, 2026, at 9:30 a.m. CT.

Here is the full post (see truthsocial): “The way the Corrupt and Failing New York Times is covering stories on a very battered and beat up Iran, through FAKE & MADE UP “FACTS” is, in my opinion, “TREASONOUS.” I will be adding all of their false and ridiculous reporting to my multi Billion Dollar lawsuit against them. They are Criminals! President DJT”

The post targeted a New York Times news analysis headlined “What Changed After Almost Four Months of War? Analysts Say Not Much,” which examined whether the U.S. military campaign against Iran achieved its stated objectives (see forbes.com). Trump claimed Iran’s military is “DONE” and cited what he described as economic devastation inside the country, open shipping lanes through the Strait of Hormuz and record highs in the U.S. stock market.

Trump threatened to fold the Times’ Iran reporting into an existing multibillion-dollar lawsuit against the newspaper. The legal action predates the current dispute, and Trump has used the threat of expanding the suit as a recurring weapon against coverage he deems unfair.

The accusation of treason against a news organization carries weight beyond ordinary political rhetoric. Treason is among the most serious charges in American law, and legal scholars have noted that applying the term to journalism blurs the line between political criticism and threats against press freedom (see newsweek.com).

Trump launched the military campaign against Iran on Feb. 28 to pressure Tehran to abandon its nuclear program, but the memorandum of understanding signed last week defers nuclear negotiations to a second round of talks (see forbes.com). Trump also stated at the outset that he wanted to “destroy their missiles,” yet the agreement does not address Iran’s missile arsenal. He told reporters last week it is “OK” for Iran to keep some missiles because “if other countries have them, it’s a little bit unfair for them not to have some.”

Iran announced Saturday it was closing the Strait of Hormuz again, citing Israel’s continued attacks in southern Lebanon, undercutting Trump’s claim that the waterway is open. U.S. intelligence assessments found the war taught Iran that shutting down the strait gives it new leverage over adversaries, CNNreported (see forbes.com).

A CBSpoll found 69 percent of respondents said the conflict with Iran was not worth the costs for the United States. Among Republicans, 42 percent said the agreement to end the war benefits Iran about as much as it benefits the U.S. (see forbes.com).

“This is not a document the United States agreed to because the war demonstrated a new U.S. military superiority,” MIT professor Caitlin Talmadgesaid of the memorandum. “I think it’s a document that has resulted from the fact that the United States bit off more than it could chew and doesn’t want to escalate” (see forbes.com).

In the last 30 days, 13 of 631 Trump posts on Truth Social addressed the topic of media bias, a pattern that reflects his sustained focus on press criticism as a messaging strategy.