The FBI has accused MS NOW of mistakenly reporting that FBI Director Kash Patel was in Russia on Wednesday, while he was actually in Virginia, prompting the network to issue a correction.
MS NOW anchor Peter Alexander announced, “We have some breaking news regarding FBI Director, Kash Patel. It appears Patel has arrived in Russia for a scheduled meeting,” citing information from “two people familiar with the matter.”
Following this, Justice and intelligence reporter Ken Dilanian was brought on to provide analysis. He expressed concern from his FBI sources, who were uncertain about Patel’s presence in Russia and noted that this could “raise eyebrows,” especially given that he could be meeting with the FSB, which is Russia’s security agency.
The FBI quickly alleviated these worries by clarifying that Patel was, in fact, in Virginia for a law enforcement appreciation event at Liberty University.
On their social media account, the FBI Rapid Response team took a jab at the network, stating, “MS Now’s ‘sources’ are ‘familiar’ with NOTHING.”
Patel weighed in, stating, “Facts over clickbait.”
As the day progressed, MS NOW corrected its earlier mistake. Dilanian addressed the viewers, saying, “I need to clarify our reporting from earlier today. We had indicated that two sources reported FBI Director Kash Patel had landed in Russia for a planned trip, but we have now confirmed he did not land in Russia today and is still in the U.S. We reached out to the FBI for clarification on this, but they did not respond.” He further added, “We understand now that he has not landed in Russia as reported, and any possible timing for a trip is still not clear. We regret the error and are committed to being transparent about our mistakes.”
When contacted for a comment, MS NOW referred to Dilanian’s remarks during their broadcast. Additionally, Politico reported previously that Patel had intentions to visit Russia, with planned stops in Moscow and St. Petersburg.
