“This was the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration — period — both in person and around the globe.” That now famous press briefing marked the beginning of the Trump administration and became a punchline. “This will be the largest audience to witness an Emmys — period.” But nearly one year later, similar verbal uppercuts on the press have defined how the Trump administration reacts to criticism. Defending your boss is nothing new. But the way they do it is. “Negative — No, that it’s O.K. — no, excuse me. Oh, no, no, no, no.” “But there’s a difference — there’s a very big — I’m sorry. I’m not finished.” “That is one of the most outrageous, insulting, ignorant and foolish things you’ve ever said.” On Sunday, it happened again. Trump senior adviser Stephen Miller was asked about the president’s mental stability. Here’s how he responded. “But I think in the toxic environment that you’ve created here in CNN and cable news, which is a real crisis of legitimacy for your network. And we saw it, of course, with the extremely fake news you reported about the Don Jr. and WikiLeaks story.” And it didn’t end well. “You’ve attemped to filibuster by talking about your fights with the president.” “No, hold on a sec.” “I want to ask you a question.” “And I think I’ve wasted enough of my viewers’ time. Thank you, Stephen.” “As Republican lawmakers call for Attorney General Jeff Sessions to resign ...” Since Trump came into office, his administration has vowed to fight the news media “tooth and nail” over what it sees as unfair attacks. Perhaps no one does this more often or more aggressively than the president himself. “Wait a minute. I’m not finished. I’m not finished, fake news.” “Buzzfeed, which is a failing pile of garbage.” White House adviser Kellyanne Conway does this often. “This president is not trusted by the American people.” “No, that’s wrong. You know what’s a problem for this nation, that you refuse — CNN used to be a place where people can tune in and get the news all day long. Now they get spin and people’s opinions.” Sarah Huckabee Sanders, the White House press secretary, does too. “There’s a very big difference between making honest mistakes and purposefully misleading the American people, something that happens regularly. You can’t say — I’m not done.” H.R. McMaster, the national security adviser, defended Trump after reports that he revealed highly classified intelligence to Russia. “I think the real issue, and I think what I’d like to see really debated more, is that our national security has been put at risk by those violating confidentiality.” While every president has grumbled about coverage, Trump has proved to be the most vocal in at least a generation. After Miller’s recent appearance, Trump tweeted out his support. So it appears that in Trump’s eyes, it’s not only important what you say, but how you say it.