FBI Director Kash Patel called on MS NOW to issue apologies after the network corrected an on-air report that he had landed in Russia. Patel said he was in Virginia at a law-enforcement appreciation event at Liberty University when the report aired.
In a post on X Thursday, Patel said MS NOW had relied on two anonymous sources and described the incident as a failure to verify his location. He said the network owed apologies to the FBI, law-enforcement personnel and the American public. Patel also criticized the network’s coverage of the FBI’s work and its cooperation with state, local and tribal law-enforcement agencies.
The report aired Wednesday. MS NOW anchor Peter Alexander told viewers Patel had landed in Russia for meetings. Justice correspondent Ken Dilanian reported that two FBI sources had told the network Patel was there, and said there were concerns within the bureau about an alleged visit to the Kremlin.
After the report, the FBI Rapid Response account on X disputed the claim, saying Patel was in Virginia for a law-enforcement event. Dilanian later returned to the issue on air, saying the network had learned Patel had not landed in Russia and remained in the United States. He said the FBI had not answered the network’s questions when asked.
Dilanian apologized for the error and said the timing of any potential trip was unclear. His correction did not establish whether Patel might travel to Russia at a later date.
MS NOW previously referred Fox News Digital to the network’s on-air correction, according to the supplied report. The network did not immediately respond to a subsequent request for comment from Fox News Digital.
The episode also prompted speculation among critics that the erroneous report might have been connected to an effort to identify FBI leakers. A bureau official, speaking to Fox News Digital, declined to confirm or deny whether leadership had carried out such an operation. The official said two leakers would likely be identified as a result and added that the FBI was always looking for leakers. The source material provides no independent confirmation of that speculation or of a specific leak-identification operation.
