Veteran TV anchor Ted Koppel said cable news would collapse if it didn't have President Trump to cover.

Koppel told CNN media correspondent Brian Stelter that his channel "would be lost without Donald Trump" during a panel discussion on journalism Tuesday night at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

Stelter responded: "Ted, you know that's not true." Koppel, best known as the former anchor of ABC's "Nightline," shot back: "CNN’s ratings would be in the toilet without Donald Trump."

Koppel's daughter Andrea, now a communications strategist, worked as a CNN correspondent from 1993 to 2006.





[More: CNN: 'Make no mistake' Trump, 'CNN does not lie']

National newspapers, magazines, and cable news have seen a spike in subscriptions and ratings since Trump exploded on the political scene in 2015 and into the second year of his presidency.

In February 2016, then-CBS executive Les Moonves remarked on Trump's impact on revenue, saying, "It's a terrible thing to say, but, bring it on, Donald. Keep going."

During the panel Koppel also took aim at MSNBC's blanket coverage of Trump: "Is there a moment of the day when they are not focusing on Donald Trump or some intimately related subject?"