New York Times recieves $1 million anonymous donation for student subscriptions

Paper's popularity soars after receiving criticism from US President Donald Trump

The New York Times has seen a big rise in subscribers since Donald Trump's election win (EPA)

An anonymous donor has given The New York Times $1 million (£820,000) as the paper continues to express its opposition to Donald Trump.

The Times has repeatedly been criticised by the US President over its coverage of his administration – an editorial stance that has seen the paper’s subscriptions soar.

It launched a "Sponsor a Subscription” programme in February and has already received enough donations to give more than 1.3 million students in the US free access to its website.

In total, 15,500 people have donated to the campaign, including the mystery donor who forked out $1 million. For every donation that pays for a student subscription, the paper provides another subscription for free.

“The genesis of the ‘sponsor a subscription’ program came directly from readers who approached us with the desire to help support independent journalism and promote news literacy after the U.S. elections" said Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., publisher of The New York Times.

"Thanks to their tremendous generosity, schools that would not normally have had the means to pay for resources like The Times are now able to empower their students with the news and information they need to help them understand the world around them.”

The Times has consistently criticised Mr Trump, using its editorial articles to label him a “liar” and accuse the Republican of being a “desperate, inept apprentice”.

The US President, meanwhile, frequently takes to Twitter to slam the paper along with other media outlets he sees as critical.

Most recently he wrote: “For the first time the failing [New York Times] will take an ad (a bad one) to help save its failing reputation. Try reporting accurately & fairly!”

Earlier he said the paper had “become a joke”. He has consistently described the Times as “failing”, despite it having reported a significant rise in subscriptions.