What happened behind closed doors before Trump fired Katie Zacharia after five days?

US President Donald Trump's former White House press secretary Katie Zacharia was reportedly in the middle of an interview with a journalist when she was unexpectedly called away for a meeting with Vice President JD Vance, shortly before losing her job.

Zacharia, whose tenure lasted just five days, was speaking to a Wall Street Journal reporter on Friday when senior White House adviser Stephen Miller interrupted the conversation.

According to the newspaper, Miller informed her that Vance wanted to speak with her, prompting Zacharia to leave the interview.

She never returned.

The unusual circumstances surrounding her departure emerged after the White House confirmed that Zacharia was leaving the position she had assumed earlier in the week.

Trump, however, publicly suggested that he had encouraged her to reconsider the job because of the criticism she had received.

The president told reporters that Zacharia had been treated unfairly by the media and questioned whether she needed to continue working under such pressure.

Her dismissal followed a difficult first week, during which she faced questions about her legal credentials and criticism over her debut White House briefing.

The briefing lasted approximately 14 minutes, with Zacharia taking questions from only three news outlets before leaving the podium.

She also admitted during a Fox News interview that she had never passed the bar exam, despite previously describing herself as a lawyer.

Following her departure, Zacharia praised Trump on social media, describing him as a hardworking and generous person.

Meanwhile, reports suggested that she would continue working with the Trump team in another capacity, although no new position had been announced.