White House press secretary Katie Zacharia faced criticism from several officials and advisers after her first briefing at the White House.
She spoke with reporters for about 15 minutes and answered three questions before ending the session.
CNN reported that some White House officials questioned how long Zacharia would remain in the role, saying her performance was unlikely to satisfy President Donald Trump.
One official characterized the briefing as "brutal."
CNN reported that Zacharia spent most of the briefing delivering an opening statement highlighting Trump's accomplishments before taking questions from reporters.
The event was shorter than the briefings previously held by former press secretary Karoline Leavitt, which averaged about 45 minutes.
One Trump adviser criticized the preparation process before Zacharia appeared at the podium.
"She should have been doing murder boards for two weeks before going up there," one Trump adviser told CNN.
The adviser also discussed a separate announcement involving Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle.
"The best thing she did was break the news about [Ambassador to Greece Kimberly] Guilfoyle — at least that takes the focus off of her performance," the adviser told CNN.
Another White House official questioned the timing of the briefing, according to CNN.
"Why did they put her out there so quickly?" a White House official told CNN.
"Literally zero reason to put her out on her second day, unprepared," the White House official told CNN.
Trump later praised Zacharia's performance after the briefing, telling reporters that he approved of her appearance.
"I thought she was very good," Donald Trump said.
CNN reported that Zacharia called on reporters from Breitbart, Fox News and the Daily Mail during the briefing.
The network noted that the first outlet occupied the "new media" seat in the briefing room.
"new media," was the designation used for the briefing room seat category referenced by CNN.
A Trump adviser later offered a more measured assessment of Zacharia's first appearance.
"wasn't great," another adviser told CNN.
The adviser added that it was Zacharia's first briefing and expected Trump would give her additional time.
CNN reported that sources said Trump had previously become interested in Zacharia's television appearances before hiring her.
Another adviser compared Zacharia's previous television experience with the demands of a White House podium briefing.
"No question we're all missing Karoline," one adviser told CNN.
Zacharia said she ended the briefing because Trump was expected to answer additional questions before leaving on a trip to Alaska.
"I am going to end it because President Trump is heading out to Marine One for our historic trip to Alaska, and we can ask him all of the questions out there," Katie Zacharia said.
CNN reported that it remained unclear how frequently Zacharia would hold formal briefings.
A review of White House video archives by CNN's Reliable Sources found Leavitt held formal briefings about once a week on average before leaving the role in August.
