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Donald Trump brands reports he watches hours of TV a 'false story' as terror incident unfolds in New York

Donald Trump: The US President lashed out over reports he watches eight hours of TV a day as a major incident unfolded in New York: AFP/Getty Images
Donald Trump: The US President lashed out over reports he watches eight hours of TV a day as a major incident unfolded in New York: AFP/Getty Images

Donald Trump lashed out over reports he spends hours a day watching television as a terror-related incident unfolded in New York.

The US President raged at the New York Times on Twitter for reporting that he watches four to eight hours of TV every day. He branded the newspaper’s article as “another false story”.

But his tweet came as police were responding to a terror-related pipe bomb explosion in Manhattan that left four people, including the attacker, injured on Monday morning.

White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders tweeted that Mr Trump had been briefed on the explosion, which occurred at 7.30am.

Instead of commenting on the suspected terror attack, Mr Trump sent a tweet at 9.17am criticising the Sunday story in The New York Times that said he watched cable news television for at least four hours a day.

Mr Trump's social media message led to US media hitting out, with the New York Post saying: “Amid terror attack in NYC, Trump’s top priority is raging at the Times.”

The president wrote: “Another false story, this time in the Failing @nytimes, that I watch 4-8 hours of television a day – Wrong! Also, I seldom, if ever, watch CNN or MSNBC, both of which I consider Fake News. I never watch Don Lemon, who I once called the ‘dumbest man on television!’ Bad Reporting.”

He was responding to an article that cited White House insiders saying he spends “at least four hours a day, and sometimes as much as twice that” in front of the TV.

The area was placed on lockdown as police investigated (AFP/Getty Images)
The area was placed on lockdown as police investigated (AFP/Getty Images)

In the story, the New York Times also wrote: "To an extent that would stun outsiders, Mr. Trump, the most talked-about human on the planet, is still delighted when he sees his name in the headlines... And he is on a perpetual quest to see it there.

"One former top adviser said Mr. Trump grew uncomfortable after two or three days of peace and could not handle watching the news without seeing himself on it."

As Mr Trump tweeted his response, police had the Port Authority Bus Terminal near Times Square placed on lockdown as they investigated reports of the explosion.

Officers took one man into custody. He was injured when the bomb reportedly malfunctioned but is said to be in a stable condition.

The suspect has since been named by police as 27-year-old Akayed Ullah.