President Trump was surprised Tuesday to learn of social media speculation that he had died when he went a few days without a public appearance.

“Really? I didn’t see that,” he told reporters in the Oval Office.

He called the erroneous speculation about his death “very serious.”

“It’s fake news. It’s so fake,” Mr. Trump said. “That’s why the media has so little credibility.”

He said he was “very active” over Labor Day weekend.

Mr. Trump said he had seen some reports saying he might have been ill during his quiet time over the holiday weekend, when he limited his public exposure to Truth Social posts, some interviews and socialized at his golf club in Sterling, Virginia.

“I didn’t do any [public appearances] for two days and they said, ‘There must be something wrong with him,’” the president said.

He said President Biden didn’t suffer such ghoulish speculation when he didn’t make public appearances.

“Biden didn’t do them for months. You didn’t see him, and nobody ever said there was ever anything wrong with him, and we know he wasn’t in the greatest of shape,” Mr. Trump said.

• Mallory Wilson can be reached at mwilson@washingtontimes.com.