The truth about Trump’s Time photo: How staffed laughed over image that sparked fury from President

When Donald Trump signed a historic peace agreement ending the war in Gaza, Time magazine tried to capture the moment with its traditional cover.

Instead, it was called, in the president’s words, “the worst photo ever taken.”

As all living Israeli hostages were returned home and the bombardment stopped, the news outlet published a groundbreaking photo of the 79-year-old man with the words ‘Victory’ next to it.

Trump appears to be staring into a beam of light, which editors might consider a commanding pose.

The image was chosen to match Trump’s landmark agreement ending the conflict between Israel and Hamas.

However, due to the camera angle, her hair appears to be missing, hitting a sore spot: her appearance.

What was supposed to be a watershed moment for the publication enraged Trump and reignited a long-running feud with Time.

And the Daily Mail has learned that this may have been a planned move by staff.

The accompanying article was a brilliant analysis of a success that had failed most of its predecessors for decades:

But Trump’s reaction was anger.

At 1.30pm on Tuesday on Truth Social – on his way back to the US from a peace summit in Egypt – he wrote to his followers: ‘Time Magazine wrote a relatively good story about me, but this picture might be the Worst of All Time.

‘They ‘lost’ my hair and then there was something floating above my head that looked like a crown but was extremely small.

When the Daily Mail reached a source from Time they said: ‘Yes it was done on purpose, we laughed about it.’

Another insider offered a more measured response but sent a message to the president that this is not a copy of Vogue.

Staff said: ‘We wanted a photo that wasn’t like the other photos.

‘If he doesn’t like the shot, that’s unfortunate.

Trump calls Truth Social cover ‘really weird’

‘But when you’re the President of the United States, you know you’re going to be photographed from every angle, and some angles are more flattering than others.

‘Of course there were people who thought it was a bad picture, but we’re not Vogue. This was accompanied by a pretty fair story about the President.’

The Daily Mail has reached out to Time Magazine for comment.

Although the photo sparked anger at the commander in chief, the article and related social media posts were fawning.

In a social media post about X, Time praised Trump’s latest deal as the ‘signature achievement’ of his second term.

Next to the photo, Time wrote, “Israeli hostages held in Gaza were released as part of the first phase of Donald Trump’s peace plan, along with the release of Palestinian prisoners.”

‘The deal could become a signature achievement in Trump’s second term and be a strategic turning point for the Middle East.’

Kari Lake, acting director of the U.S. Agency for Global Media and a long-time supporter of the President, posted a fake version of the Time cover on X.

Trump signs Israel-Hamas ceasefire agreement at peace summit in Egypt on Monday

The edited photo shows Trump looking straight ahead with his hair in full view and the caption: “Trump’s Victory: Bringing Peace to the World.”

Trump has previously been disturbed by how he has been portrayed, believing it was intentional in many cases.

In March, he was outraged by a portrait at the Colorado State Capitol.

“No one likes a bad picture or picture of themselves, but in Colorado, the picture crafted by the Governor and every other President at the State Capitol was deliberately distorted to a level that perhaps even I have never seen before,” Trump wrote on Truth Social at the time.

Sarah Boardman’s painting was later removed.

Trump also ordered changes to presidential portraits in the White House.

His portrait at his inauguration in January showed him with a serious look.

In June, West Wing staff released an updated version with more dramatic lighting and a black background.

Trump also frequently picks fights with news outlets, and Zaman has been one of his popular targets.

It’s far from his first time on the cover. A February 2025 illustration of a man scrolling through papers from the Resolute Desk in the Oval Office with the caption “He’s Back.”

A close-up portrait was printed in May 2025 and was titled: “Dealing with It”.

He was named Time’s Person of the Year in 2024.

Editor-in-chief Sam Jacobs wrote at the time: ‘Since he began running for president in 2015, perhaps no person has played a bigger role in changing the course of politics and history than Trump.’

But in February 2025, he mocked the magazine for placing a fake photo of Elon Musk behind the Resolute Desk, saying he “didn’t know it was still in business.”

He frequently criticized Kamala Harris’ coverage during the campaign in October 2024.

He also accused Time of using a fake photo of the then-Vice President.