Katie Zacharia is leaving her position as White House press secretary a week after President Trump nominated her and four days after her first and only press briefing.
A senior White House official said that Ms Zacharia was stepping down from the role. Mr Trump told reporters on Friday that he had not fired her.
"No, no. I want her to have a good life," he said. "She's been brutalized by the media."
The president said that he had spoken to her just minutes before and that he had told her: "You don't have to do this if you don't want to." When asked if he was contemplating offering her another position, he replied: "I said, 'When I get back, we're going to talk,' because I don't think that Katie should be made to suffer like she's suffering at the hands of the press. So I will talk to her as soon as I get back."
Ms Zacharia will continue to work within the Trump administration "in some form," Mr Trump said. He added that "it may be a more pleasant form."
Mr Trump announced Ms Zacharia's appointment to Truth Social on Oct. 9. He described it as his "Great Honor" and said that she "the respect of, and will work fantastically with, the Media." Ms Zacharia took up her position on Oct. 12 and she replaced Karoline Leavitt, who departed the White House late in August.
Ms Zacharia, a lawyer and conservative commentator, had been working since June as a senior communications adviser at Trump Media & Technology Group, which owns Truth Social. She also served as a spokeswoman for the Department of Homeland Security for two months and is a graduate of Pepperdine University and its law school.
Ms Zacharia's first briefing, on Oct. 13, lasted 14 minutes. She read from a teleprompter for about eight minutes and answered three questions from Fox News, Breitbart and The Daily Mail before concluding her briefing. At one point she referred to her husband as "my president" before quickly correcting herself.
She did make some news, however, announcing that the administration had requested that Kimberly Guilfoyle resign her position.
Reviews for her first briefing were mixed. The New York Times' briefing review said that it was "bumpy." Press Secretary to President Biden, Jen Psaki, said that it was like a "sketch." Joe Lockhart, a press secretary to President Clinton, told CNN that it was strange to bring her out and then quickly kick her out of the room. CNN reported that multiple White House officials believed that Ms Zacharia would not last long in the role.
Mr Trump has spoken up for Ms Zacharia, saying in September that "I thought she was very good." White House communications director Steven Cheung described Ms Zacharia as a "wonderful addition" to the team.
Ms Zacharia was questioned throughout the week about her claim to be a lawyer. Reporters asked her about which state she had been admitted to the bar, and a watchdog group filed a complaint against her with the California bar. Ms Zacharia said that she had sought multiple legal opinions to confirm that the title was accurate when providing legal analysis.
In a Thursday interview on Real America's Voice, Ms Zacharia blamed her first briefing on the timing, saying that it was in the morning on the day after a holiday.
Anthony Scaramucci, who served 11 days as White House communications director during Mr Trump's first term, told CNN this week that Ms Zacharia was not qualified for the role.
The White House has not announced a replacement or said when Ms Zacharia will leave her role.
