"On this matter of crowd size, I think it is a symbol for the unfair and incomplete treatment that this president often receives," Conway said. | AP Photo Conway: Spicer presented 'alternative facts' on inauguration crowds

White House counselor Kellyanne Conway on Sunday defended press secretary Sean Spicer's statement criticizing media coverage of the crowds at President Donald Trump's inauguration, saying he presented "alternative facts."

In an interview on NBC's "Meet the Press," host Chuck Todd pressed Conway on why Spicer, who blasted the media coverage of the crowds from the White House briefing room Saturday evening, would appear "in front of the podium for the first time and utter a falsehood."


"You're saying it's a falsehood. ... Sean Spicer, our press secretary, gave alternative facts to that," Conway said.

"Look, alternative facts are not facts. They're falsehoods," Todd responded.

Without taking reporters' questions, Spicer called Trump's inaugural crowds "the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period." Photographs, however, show the crowd to be considerably smaller than former President Barack Obama's inauguration in 2009.

Earlier Saturday, Trump touted the attendance for his inauguration at an address to CIA employees at the agency's Langley headquarters. Both Conway and White House chief of staff Reince Priebus Sunday characterized the crowd coverage as unfair media coverage of Trump.

"On this matter of crowd size, I think it is a symbol for the unfair and incomplete treatment that this president often receives," Conway said.