CNN’s Clarissa Ward Hits Back at White House for Calling Her a ‘Complete Freak’ and ‘Hot Mess’ Over Dancing Video
CNN’s Clarissa Ward Hits Back at White House for Calling Her a ‘Complete Freak’ and ‘Hot Mess’ Over Dancing Video
Bailey RichardsWed, August 12, 2026 at 7:13 PM UTC
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CNN’s Clarissa Ward dances in a Aug. 11 social media videoCredit: Clarissa Ward/Instagram (2) -
CNN’s Clarissa Ward reacted after the White House called her names on social media over a playful travel video she posted on Tuesday, Aug. 11
The White House called her “embarrassing,” a “complete freak” and a “hot mess” for dancing in the video
Ward, the chief international correspondent at CNN, addressed the social media attack with a simple reply
After President Donald Trump’s White House called CNN reporter Clarissa Ward names for dancing playfully in a lengthy social media attack, she hit back with a simple reply.
On Tuesday, Aug. 11, the network’s chief international correspondent documented a recent assignment with a lighthearted video on Instagram, which showed her dancing at the airport and on various modes of transportation. Shortly after, the White House called her a “freak” and “hot mess” for sharing the post.
“Imagine being a self-described ‘serious’ journalist at CNN and acting like a complete freak in public, embarrassing yourself all for some social media clicks,” the White House said on X via its Rapid Response 47 account.
“Honey, nobody wants to watch that hot mess,” concluded the same X post, which also included a repost of Ward’s original video.
The White House calls out Clarissa Ward on X over dancing videoCredit: Rapid Response 47/X
The following day, Wednesday, Aug. 12, the journalist responded to the White House’s post, calling them out with a simple, six-word reply.
“Dancing is good for the soul 💗💃💪✌️,” she replied on X.
Ward’s original video was a travel montage set to “Shake Your Groove Thing” by Peaches & Herb.
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The post saw the CNN correspondent dancing throughout her work trip — seemingly to Spain to cover the total solar eclipse, though she kept the exact assignment a mystery. It also featured several cameos from her colleagues at the network.
CNN’s Clarissa Ward at the 2024 News Emmy Awards in New York CityCredit: Dia Dipasupil/Getty
In the caption of the Tuesday post that caught the White House’s attention, Ward shared a message encouraging her followers to be unafraid to embarrass themselves.
“When you get an assignment that is just good fun…. Feeling PUMPED! Can you tell? 🤣💃🤪,” she wrote in the caption. “Drinks on me for anyone who can guess what I’m going to cover. Actually, there are some pretty blatant clues in there so you might have to settle for a like.”
Ward continued, “✌️and 💗 and remember, if you’re not laughing your ass off and making a tit out of yourself, you’re doing this wrong!! With cameos from @smcwhinniecnn and @vascocnn And big ups to my fellow mischief maker @quinta_thomson.”
The response to Ward’s video — and the White House’s subsequent attack — were mixed, though several social media users pointed out the irony of calling out the journalist’s dancing given how often Trump shows off his own signature moves.
The White House’s attack on Ward also comes after the president’s long history of public outbursts against female journalists, including calling Bloomberg’s Catherine Lucey “piggy” last year, slamming The New York Times’ Katie Rogers as “ugly, both inside and out,” and launching several digs at CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, who has been a repeat target of his verbal attacks.
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
