President-elect Trump is promising to make himself available to the press and keep an open mind when dealing with journalists when he takes office next year.
"In order to Make America Great Again, it is very important, if not vital, to have a free, fair and open media or press," Trump, who has long had an acrimonious relationship with the media, said as part of an extensive interview given to Fox News Digital.
Trump confirmed a Mar-a-Lago meeting he hosted late last week with Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, co-hosts of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe," during which the three re-opened communication ahead of his second term in the White House, saying, "in many ways, it’s too bad that it wasn’t done long ago."
"I expect this will take place with others in the media, even those that have been extremely hostile," Trump told Fox News, noting he has "an obligation to the American public, and to our country itself, to be open and available to the press."
"If not treated fairly, however, that will end," the president-elect added. "The media is very important to the long-term success of the United States of America."
Trump made attacks on the press a hallmark of his campaign messaging this year. He regularly ridicules "the fake news media" and has threatened to use the power of the federal government to crack down on broadcast news networks he says is unfair to him.
The former president last month sued CBS News over a "60 Minutes" interview it aired with Vice President Harris that he and his allies have argued was edited in a way to cast her in a positive light ahead of the election.
But during his conversation with Fox, Trump struck a different tone.
"And while many others are calling for meetings, I am not looking for retribution, grandstanding or to destroy people who treated me very unfairly, or even badly beyond comprehension," Trump said. "I am always looking to give a second and even third chance, but never willing to give a fourth chance — that is where I hold the line."
