MSNBC television personalities were compelled to issue on-air corrections Tuesday after they had erroneously broadcasted false information regarding Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard’s comments about President Donald Trump’s relationship with a foreign leader.
The incident began when the Associated Press published an inaccurate report claiming Gabbard had described Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin as “very good friends” during an interview with an Indian television network. However, the full interview footage later revealed that Gabbard had actually been discussing Trump’s
relationship with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, not Putin.
Following the AP’s misreporting, MSNBC hosts Ali Velshi and Stephanie Ruhle repeated the false claim on their respective shows, The Last Word and 11th Hour. Both anchors subsequently had to walk back their statements once the error came to light.
During his correction, Velshi acknowledged that while his show had reported on Gabbard’s interview comments about Trump’s friendship with a world leader, they had wrongly identified that leader as Putin when it was actually Modi. Ruhle offered a similar retraction on her program, carefully noting that the full interview footage clarified Gabbard had been referring to the Indian Prime Minister.
The Associated Press also issued its own retraction, withdrawing the original story and announcing plans to publish a corrected version. In their statement, the AP explicitly acknowledged their error in misidentifying the world leader Gabbard had referenced.
The situation drew sharp criticism from Gabbard’s spokesperson, Alexa Henning, who condemned the media’s handling of the story. Henning, an experienced Republican communications professional, characterized the AP’s reporting as “total trash” and cited the incident as an example of why public trust in media has eroded. She specifically pointed to what she described as purposeful bias and malicious incompetence in pushing political narratives.
This media controversy emerges in the wake of recent tensions between the Trump administration and the Associated Press. Just weeks prior to this incident, Trump had made the decision to revoke the AP’s special access to the Oval Office, citing concerns over what he considered misleading and false reporting by the news organization.
The incident highlights ongoing challenges in the media landscape regarding accurate reporting and the speed at which information is disseminated. Both MSNBC anchors’ corrections appeared to follow similar scripting, suggesting possible legal considerations in their retractions. The episode serves as a reminder of the importance of verifying information and consulting primary sources before
broadcasting news to the public.
The swift corrections by both the AP and MSNBC personalities demonstrate the media’s obligation to maintain accuracy in reporting, even when it means acknowledging and correcting previous
misstatements. This situation underscores the continuing tension between rapid news delivery and maintaining journalistic integrity in contemporary media operations.