The New York Times on Wednesday defended one of its reporters, Katie Rogers, who became Donald Trump’s latest target after co-authoring a story exploring the president’s health and aging.

The article written by Rogers and Dylan Freedman, titled “Shorter days, signs of fatigue: Trump faces the realities of aging in office,” cites an analysis showing that the president has decreased his public appearances by 39% and has maintained a shorter schedule than he used to have at this point in his first presidency. The report also noted that Trump has been seen sleeping during meetings.

President Donald Trump listens as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during an event on drug prices, Nov. 6, 2025, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.
President Donald Trump listens as Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. speaks during an event on drug prices, Nov. 6, 2025, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington.

AP Photo/Evan Vucci

Trump criticized the Times on social media for the article, which he described as a “hit piece.”

“This cheap ‘RAG’ is truly an ‘ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE,’” he wrote on his Truth Social platform. “The writer of the story, Katie Rogers, who is assigned to write only bad things about me, is a third-rate reporter who is ugly, both inside and out.”

A Times spokesperson responded to Trump’s remarks, stating that the article is “accurate and based on first-hand reporting of the facts,” and rejected Trump’s attack on Rogers.

“Personal insults and name-calling do not change that, nor will our journalists hesitate to cover this administration in the face of intimidation tactics like this,” the spokesperson said in a statement on X.

“Skilled and thorough reporters like Katie Rogers exemplify how a free, independent press helps the American people better understand their government and their leaders,” they continued.