Trump uses daily coronavirus briefing to attack reporter

 President Donald Trump called NBC News correspondent Peter Alexander a “terrible reporter” during Friday's White House news briefing for asking what he would say to Americans who are scared about coronavirus.

Or reporters pushed back against Trump. Alexander later asked Vice President Mike Pence same question — and got an answer.

same ministration that stopped a once-daily briefing session with White House press secretary w has president and his aides talk each day about pandemic on live television, and early indications are that it's a hit. Friday's news conference, shown by big brocast and cable news networks for more than 90 minutes, featured an old star in a new role: Trump's first press secretary, Sean Spicer, asked questions in his role as a television host for Newsmax.

In last two briefings, Trump's grievances with media bubbled to surface.

Following a discussion about use of a drug as a potential treatment for coronavirus, Alexander wondered wher that offered a false sense of hope. He asked president what was his mess to people who are frightened, which Trump sarcastically called a “lovely question.”

“I'd say that you're a terrible reporter, that's what I'd say,” president said. “I think it's a very nasty question and I think it's a very b signal that you're putting out to American people. American people are looking for answers and y're looking for hope, and you're doing sensationalism.”

He told Alexander, “you ought to be ashamed of yourself.”

Four reporters — CNN's Kaitlin Collins, ABC's Cecilia Vega, AP's Jill Colvin and PBS' Yamiche Alcindor— later challenged Trump or Secretary of State Mike Pompeo about mess it sent to be attacking media during coronavirus outbreak. CNN's John King called it a “reprehensible” response to a fair question.

Alexander said that he considered his question to be a “softball,” giving president an opportunity to offer reassurance to American people.

“I think it does sort of reveal a frustration, perhaps an anxiety of his political prospects, about a situation that is hard to keep in control as we witnessed it continue to spiral at this time,” Alexander said on MSNBC.

attack came hours after NBC News anunced that a technician in its New York office h died Thursday of coronavirus. Alexander's boss, NBC News Chairman Andy Lack, defended questioning as “fair, straightforward and necessary.”

Suzanne ssel, CEO of literary and human rights organization PEN America, said Trump's attacks on media have “become an appalling daily spectacle and an international embarrassment to United States.”

Ari Fleischer, former White House press secretary under President George W. Bush, said re was thing wrong with Alexander's literal question.

“But it was off-putting for Peter to challenge Trump because POTUS said he was hopeful and optimistic about an anti-coronavirus drug," Fleischer wrote. "re is thing wrong with hope.”

When Pence was asked same question, vice president urged Americans to “be vigilant.” He said that while risk of coming down with illness is low, every American will need to work toger to keep country safe.

It was second straight day that Trump h leveled his “fake news” charge at reporters in his briefing. On Thursday he looked at his questioners, who left seats empty in briefing room in order to comply with recommendations to maintain social distance from colleagues to protect against virus.

“You're actually sitting too close,” said president, who stood on a crowded podium with ministration officials. “Really, we should probably get rid of about ar 75, 80 percent of you. I'll have just two or three that I like in this room. I think that's a great way of doing it.”

Spicer's appearance at news conference was worth a double-take. He has recently taken a job hosting a talk show for conservative television network Newsmax. Neir ackwledged ir prior relationship.

Spicer asked two newsy questions, one about small business that he didn't complete before Trump started talking, and or seeking president's response to recent sales of stock by senators that have raised questions about potential insider tring.

One White House reporter, NBC News' Kelly O'Donnell, later tweeted disapproval of former press secretary sitting among journalists to ask questions of president he once worked for.

“ door between politics and media sometimes revolves, but it is t appropriate to question one's former boss,” she said.

Spicer said that when he was press secretary, he didn’t try to call “balls and strikes” by excluding reporters. Spicer said that he asked two legitimate questions on subjects that Americans were interested in and that he was discussing on his show.

“It’s t up to ar correspondent like Kelly O’Donnell to determine what’s appropriate,” he said.

Within past week president, who has received criticism for a slow response to pandemic, has gared an audience of millions on television each day in an election year to deliver his unfiltered mess. Even though he's responding to reporters, one columnist, Jennifer Rubin of Washington Post, wrote Friday that journalists are t assertively checking his facts.

ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, CNN, MSNBC and Fox News Channel all aired Friday's briefing. Trump's campaign rallies have been put on hold due to virus, but his briefings reach more people, many of m isolated in ir homes.

For example, an audience of 8 million people watched Trump's briefing Sunday afteron on three cable news networks, led by Fox News Channel. At same time during same Sunday a year earlier, re were 1.75 million watching those networks, Nielsen company said.