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According to the administration, the official White House app topped Apple’s news category and was in the overall top 20 on 22 September. That does not in itself prove that users are turning their backs on other news media.
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The White House announced the chart positions on 23 September and also reported more than two million downloads across Apple’s App Store and Google Play combined. The administration presents this success as evidence that Americans want to receive news directly from the presidency rather than through other media. The press release provides no research into those user motivations. [1]
The announcement follows the launch of TrumpTV, which, according to NPR, began streaming on Monday evening, 21 September. The video service can also be watched through the app. Whether the launch led to additional downloads has not been established. [1] [9]
When accessed on 23 September, Apple’s US product page showed the app in second place in the news category. It also displayed a rating of 4.9 out of 5, based on around 6,600 ratings. This supports the high rating cited by the White House, but covers only people who submitted a rating. [2]
The app did not appear in the separately accessed top 25 chart of free US iPhone apps. These later snapshots neither confirm nor refute the reported first place and overall top 20 position on 22 September: an earlier peak remains possible. A historical chart measurement for that day is missing. [2] [3]
The combined download total has not been independently confirmed either. Google Play lists at least 100,000 downloads, but that threshold indicator does not provide an exact count across both stores combined. The White House provides no breakdown by platform or counting method. [1] [4]
The app has also been distributed through government devices. In May, Government Executive reported on instructions to prepare for installation on federal employees’ work phones. The aviation authority, the FAA, announced automatic installation on the iPhones and iPads it had issued. The White House defended pre-installed apps as useful for day-to-day work.
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WIRED reported in June that staff at several departments had indeed found the app on their work phones. Those anonymous accounts do not provide a representative picture of the government as a whole. It is unknown how many devices received the app automatically or whether such installations count towards download figures and rankings. They therefore do not explain the reported September position. [8]
How many individual Americans actively use the app remains unknown. Downloads, ratings and chart positions do not, on their own, show whether people are following less news from other media. [5]