On Tuesday, June 10th, the American Broadcasting Company News (ABC News) failed to renew the contract with reporter Terry Moran. This decision was made after Moran had referred to President Trump as a “world-class hater” in a now-deleted post and made derogatory remarks about Trump’s senior advisor, Stephen Miller.
A spokesperson for ABC News stated in a press release that the company had decided not to renew Moran’s contract due to his post violating company policies and principles of journalistic integrity.
“We have decided not to renew our contract with Moran as his recent posts, which clearly violate ABC News policies, do not align with our standards,” the spokesperson said.
ABC News mandates all reporters to adhere to the highest standards of objectivity, fairness, and professionalism, and is steadfast in providing straightforward and trustworthy news coverage, the spokesperson added.
Moran, 65, has been working at ABC News for over 20 years, covering a wide range of news including presidential elections, Supreme Court rulings, overseas wars, and the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. His contract with ABC is set to expire this Friday, the 13th.
In April of this year, Moran conducted an exclusive interview with President Trump in the Oval Office. During the interview, Moran and Trump had several tense exchanges, including a discussion about the deportation of an illegal immigrant, Kilmar Garcia, to El Salvador.
At the time, Trump pointed out Garcia’s tattoos related to the MS-13 gang, while Moran claimed that the tattoo photos shared by Trump had been digitally altered. Garcia has since returned to the U.S. and is facing charges of smuggling other illegal immigrants into the country.
Following this interview, Moran posted a controversial article on X platform containing offensive remarks about Trump and Miller. The post was later deleted.
The White House has called on ABC to hold Moran accountable for publishing the inflammatory post. White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote in a post on June 8th, “Last night, so-called journalist @TerryMoran made audacious attacks on Stephen Miller in a now-deleted post and labeled President Trump a ‘world-class hater,’ which is outrageous and unacceptable. We have contacted @ABC to inquire about their plans to address Terry’s responsibility.”
Miller also responded to Moran’s post, calling his comments “completely unhinged” and labeling him as a radical masquerading as a journalist.
Vice President JD Vance also weighed in, expressing understanding for Miller and criticizing Moran’s post as “shameful,” urging ABC to apologize to Miller.
President Trump has not publicly commented on the post that led to Moran’s contract termination. However, during a recent interview, Trump stated that Moran’s insistence that Garcia’s tattoos did not signify membership in MS-13 was irresponsible to viewers.
“This is why people no longer trust the news, because this is fake news,” Trump commented, accusing Moran of dishonesty.
This is not the first time a journalist’s remarks have stirred controversies between ABC and the Trump administration.
In 2024, ABC and anchor George Stephanopoulos reached a settlement in a defamation lawsuit with Trump. ABC issued an apology to Trump and paid $15 million in damages.
At that time, Stephanopoulos had claimed during an interview that Trump had committed “rape” in a civil case, a statement that was inconsistent with the judge’s ruling.