White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia Shuts Down Media Questions Despite Role Demands, Then Tells Reporters to Contact Her by Text or Email

New White House Press Secretary Katie Zacharia seemed to miss the point of her new job when she shut down questions from reporters and invited them to shoot her a text or email.

On October 16, the 41-year-old Zacharia, three days into her new gig, walked up to reporters on the White House lawn and opened her remarks with, "I'm not taking any questions."

The new press secretary's defiant refusal seemed to preempt questions about the controversy surrounding her status as a so-called "lawyer."

Before landing her gig, the new press secretary had repeatedly referred to herself as a lawyer on social media and television despite never having passed the bar exam, though she did graduate from Pepperdine University's law school.

In some states, it is illegal to misidentify yourself as an attorney.

Her hire — which was pushed through by President Donald Trump with threadbare vetting — has immediately thrown the White House into chaos, with reports saying officials are panicking about her performance while others claim Chief of Staff Susie Wiles could be on the chopping block for opposing the president.

Zacharia's stunning refusal to take questions from the media comes as even conservative outlets are giving her a grilling.

The night prior, Zacharia appeared on Sean Hannity's show, which didn't go well.

Hannity pressed Zacharia on the "lawyer" controversy, asking her, "You said you consulted with people who advised you it was okay to call yourself a lawyer but not an attorney, correct? There's a report out tonight showing 15 social media posts where you identify yourself as an attorney."

Things didn't improve for Zacharia on the following morning's Fox and Friends, where hosts Brian Kilmeade and Lawrence Jones picked up where Hannity left off.

Kilmeade asked her, "Your thoughts about how your job has gone so far?" to which Zacharia responded, "I hit the ground running."

Her first press conference on October 13 was widely criticized online and in the White House, with one insider saying the new press secretary looked like "she could barely read."

Jones asked, "It's been a tough week for you. Do you wish you would've disclosed to the president about not passing the bar?"

Zacharia replied, "Those questions weren't asked."

Though only on the job since October 13, Zacharia's first week attempting to fill Karoline Leavitt's shoes has many convinced she'll likely be fired sooner rather than later.

Anthony Scaramucci, who set the record for shortest stint as press secretary when he served 11 days in 2017, joked online that the "clock is ticking" for Zacharia.

Scaramucci's tenure has reportedly come up in the White House as well. After her disastrous first press conference, one White House insider texted MS NOW, “Getting behind the podium is tough, but she got off on the wrong foot. She needs to get much better, fast, otherwise she’ll break Scaramucci’s record.”