1. Skip to content
  2. Skip to main menu
  3. Skip to more DW sites
Politics

US first lady's spokeswoman to be new press sec

June 25, 2019

Stephanie Grisham has been tapped to be the next White House press secretary. It remains to be seen what direction she will take, as her predecessors were known for their confrontational relationships with the press.

Stephanie Grisham
Image: picture-alliance/AP Photo/J. Martin

Stephanie Grisham, a longtime spokeswoman for Melania Trump, will become the next White House press secretary, the first lady announced on Tuesday.

Grisham has been working with US President Donald Trump since he launched his campaign in 2015 and is one of the few campaign officials who is still working at the White House.

Melania Trump tweeted that she and her husband "could think of no better person to serve the administration and our country."

Alongside her job as White House press secretary, Grisham will also take on the strategic role as White House communications director and continue to serve as Melania Trump's spokeswoman — a total of three top communications jobs.

Grisham will replace Sarah Huckabee Sanders, who is leaving the job as the White House's top spokesperson at the end of the month after serving in the post since July 2017.

Confrontational relationship

Although the president praised her for doing an "outstanding job," Sanders was known for her confrontational relationship with the White House press corps.

She was frequently criticized for giving journalists misleading answers and for holding fewer briefings, which used to be daily occurrences under previous administrations.

Trump's first White House press secretary, Sean Spicer, resigned after six months after a turbulent tenure in the job that also saw him spar with reporters.

On Tuesday, Trump seemed to suggest that relations with the press would not be as contentious under Grisham.

"She actually gets along with the media," the president told reporters.

rs/se (AP, dpa)

Each evening at 1830 UTC, DW's editors send out a selection of the day's hard news and quality feature journalism. You can sign up to receive it directly here.

Skip next section Explore more
Skip next section DW's Top Story

DW's Top Story

Skip next section More stories from DW