Katie Zacharia claims her Fox News appearances were an ‘audition’ for Donald Trump’s White House job

WASHINGTON, DC: White House press secretary Katie Zacharia has revealed how she tried to get President Donald Trump's attention before landing the high-profile role, admitting she made sure to appear on Fox News discussing issues important to him.

In an interview with Jack Posobiec for 'Real America's Voice', Zacharia said she did not directly lobby for the job but instead used her television appearances as an unofficial audition.

Zacharia, who was named press secretary on October 9, replacing Karoline Leavitt, said she believed Trump would consider her for the position if he saw her on television and liked what she had to say.

Katie Zacharia explains how Fox News became her audition for Donald Trump

During her interview with Posobiec, Zacharia recalled receiving calls from journalists and reporters asking whether she wanted to put her name forward for the press secretary position after Leavitt's departure.

She said she initially rejected the idea of publicly pursuing the job, insisting that directly lobbying for it would not have worked.

"I am not lobbying for this job. I do not want my name anywhere near a journal or any kind of news outlet. I just don't want any press on this," Zacharia said, describing her initial reaction to the inquiries.

She explained that she believed her regular television appearances could get Trump's attention without her having to formally ask for the position.

"My philosophy is I'm on TV enough where if he sees me and he likes me, then I will be recruited for the job," she said.

Zacharia added that she preferred to demonstrate what she could offer rather than campaign for the position behind the scenes.

"I wanted to work for it. I wanted audition for it. I think that's a much better way of encapsulating it," she said.

Katie Zacharia tracked Donald Trump's priorities through Truth Social

Zacharia explained that her approach involved following the issues Trump was discussing and making sure her television appearances reflected those priorities.

She previously served as a senior communications advisor for Trump Media and Technology Group and Truth Social.

Her role gave her an opportunity to follow the president's public statements and identify the subjects he wanted to focus on.

She said she tracked Trump's priorities and then discussed those issues during her television appearances, hoping he would notice her work.

Posobiec suggested that her previous communications role meant she was already performing some of the responsibilities associated with the press secretary position by helping explain Trump's statements.

"So in a sense, you were already performing the role in a capacity for Truth Social, because, of course, that's where he puts out all of his statements," Posobiec noted.

Zacharia also discussed how she tried to provide context for Trump's relationship with Chinese President Xi Jinping. At the time, critics were accusing Trump of being too friendly toward the Chinese leader.

Having worked in China, Zacharia said she wanted to explain why Trump's approach could help negotiations rather than damage them.

"I really wanted to give context for how you do business in China and why President Trump's approach is actually the effective way to get the deal done rather than being deleterious to the deal," she said.

She argued that Trump's willingness to show deference to Xi Jinping could help him secure an agreement.

Katie Zacharia faces scrutiny after first White House press briefing

Zacharia's appointment has already attracted attention, with her first press briefing on October 13 drawing criticism over her delivery.

She reportedly stumbled over her words during the appearance, which she attributed to exhaustion after being awake since 3 am that day.

The criticism came just days after she took over from Leavitt as the administration's press secretary.

Questions have also emerged over Zacharia's legal credentials.

She has referred to herself as a lawyer and works as general counsel for a California political organization, but reports have raised questions about whether she passed the bar exam.

Zacharia previously worked briefly in the administration as a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security before taking on her communications role at Trump Media.