US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly harangued the media for publishing supposed "fake news," on Tuesday saw his organization caught distributing its own bogus material.

A reporter for the Washington Post newspaper uncovered a Time magazine cover hanging in one of Trump's golf resorts, depicting the then-real estate magnate and reality TV star with his arms crossed, accompanied by a headline reading "Donald Trump: The 'Apprentice' is a television smash!"

While the fake cover is dated March 1, 2009, the real Time magazine published at that time featured actress Kate Winslet on the cover.

The Trump administration declined to respond to questions on the cover, and the designer of the cover remains unknown. However, the Washington Post reported that the bar code on the fake cover matched one featured in an online graphic design tutorial from 2010.

Now Time magazine has demanded that the Trump Organization take down the fake covers, which are believed to be hanging in as many as five resorts, including sites in Florida and Scotland.

Trump has suggested that he appreciates the prestige of appearing on Time's cover. In a speech at CIA headquarters in January, the president said, "I think we have the all-time record in the history of Time magazine."

That assertion is not true. President Richard Nixon had appeared on dozens of covers before his death in 1994, while Trump has made the cover 14 times.

dm/gsw (dpa, Washington Post)