"FAKE NEWS — A TOTAL POLITICAL WITCH HUNT!" Trump said on Twitter after the publications, without specifying which reports he was referring to.
The president-elect later linked an article criticizing BuzzFeed and CNN for circulating unsupported claims.
A synopsis of the documents was included in Friday's US intelligence report, presented to both Trump and outgoing President Barack Obama. Intelligence officials presenting the documents reportedly stated the former MI6 operative was a reliable source but added that work on verifying the claims made within the memos was underway.
The memos also alleged that Trump's lawyer Michael Cohen had a central role in Trump's contacts with Russia and had secretly met with Russian officials in Prague ahead of November's US presidential election. Cohen also took to Twitter to dismiss the allegations, stating that he never went to Prague before and attached a picture of his passport.
The latest iteration of the Russia-related media storm around Trump comes amid the Democratic National Committee (DNC) hacking scandal in the United States. US intelligence has accused Russia of hacking DNC servers and leaking information compromising former Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton to WikiLeaks prior to US presidental elections in an effort to boost her opponent Donald Trump's chances of victory.
In Friday's report, US Intelligence released a public version of a comprehensive intelligence report assessing Russian activities and intentions related to the 2016 US presidential election. The report accused Russia of trying to influence the election. After being briefed on the report, Trump said the DNC hack did not have an impact on the election outcome.
Russia has repeatedly denied the US allegations calling them absurd and characterizing them as an attempt to divert public opinion from revelations of corruption as well as other pressing domestic issues.
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