Washington, D.C. — Kaitlan Collins, CNN’s chief White House correspondent, was conspicuously missing from Wednesday’s White House press briefing, just days after a viral showdown with Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt.

Kaitlan Collins was absent at the White House press briefing on Wednesday as her colleague Jeff Zeleny represented CNN at the press pool

The heated exchange on Monday thrust Collins into the spotlight, but her absence was chalked up to CNN’s routine rotation of reporters rather than any fallout from the confrontation.

Stepping in for Collins was Jeff Zeleny, CNN’s Chief National Affairs Correspondent, who took the network’s spot in the press pool. Collins, who also anchors CNN’s primetime show The Source from the nation’s capital, is part of a White House team that includes Alayna Treene, Kevin Liptak, and Kayla Tausche. While she doesn’t attend every briefing, her recent tangles with Leavitt have left a lasting mark.

The latest dust-up came when Collins pressed Leavitt on whether evidence existed to support claims that former President Joe Biden’s last-minute pardons were invalid due to his use of an autopen. Leavitt fired back with a sharp retort: “You’re a reporter, you should find out.” The awkward moment quickly spread online. Leavitt doubled down, questioning whether Biden was even aware of the pardons and suggesting the press dig into potential legal issues themselves.

Karoline Leavitt has frequently sparred with reporters at her briefings and recently hit back at Collins for a question on former President Biden's pardons

Tensions between the Trump administration and the media have been simmering, with Leavitt often at the center of testy exchanges. Last month, Collins grilled her over the White House’s decision to bar an Associated Press (AP) reporter from Oval Office and diplomatic events—a move Collins hinted was “retaliatory.” The AP’s exclusion followed its refusal to adopt Trump’s executive order renaming the Gulf of Mexico the “Gulf of America.” Leavitt dismissed the criticism, insisting the White House would penalize outlets “pushing lies” and calling the new name a “fact.”

Collins has built a reputation for tough questions, clashing not only with Leavitt but also with President Trump himself. In February, Trump took swipes at her during an Oval Office briefing, linking her to Biden and slamming CNN’s credibility after she asked about Russian President Vladimir Putin. It wasn’t the first time—during Trump’s first term, he barred Collins from an event after she questioned him about Putin and his ex-lawyer Michael Cohen.

Leavitt’s combative style isn’t reserved for Collins alone. Just last week, she clashed with AP reporter Josh Boak over Trump’s tariff policies. When Boak pressed her on who pays tariffs—American importers or foreign nations—Leavitt called the question “insulting” and defended the policy as a boon for U.S. wages and wealth.

CNN's Chief National Affairs Correspondent Jeff Zeleny represented CNN instead of Collins during Wednesday's briefing

The Trump administration’s shake-up of press corps norms, including revoking the AP’s access to pool events, has only fueled the growing friction with reporters. For now, Collins’ absence from Wednesday’s briefing may have cooled the room, but her exchanges with Leavitt—and the administration—show no signs of fading from the headlines.