FBI denies MS NOW report of probe targeting Atlantic journalist

The FBI on Wednesday denied an MS NOW report that the Bureau is investigating the reporter behind a controversial “hit piece” on Director Kash Patel. 

Citing two people familiar with the matter, MS NOW reported the FBI has “launched a criminal leak investigation focusing on an Atlantic magazine journalist who wrote a deeply unflattering account last month of Director Kash Patel’s work habits.” 

The Atlantic published a piece by reporter Sarah Fitzpatrick headlined, “The FBI Director Is MIA,” which cited multiple anonymous sources telling the outlet that the FBI director had an “emotional outburst” related to difficulty logging into a computer system, has had “bouts of excessive drinking” and been absent enough to prompt security concerns.

FBI DIRECTOR KASH PATEL FILES $250 MILLION LAWSUIT AGAINST THE ATLANTIC OVER ‘DEFAMATORY HIT PIECE’

Patel, who quickly filed a $250 million lawsuit on the “defamatory hit piece,” previously told Fox News Digital, “The Atlantic’s story is a lie. They were given the truth before they published, and they chose to print falsehoods anyway.”

The Atlantic has stood by its story and MS NOW reported that the alleged FBI probe could be used to access Fitzpatrick’s phone records and examine social media contacts. 

MS NOW added that the alleged FBI investigation is “highly unusual because it did not stem from a disclosure of classified information and because it is focused on leaks to a reporter,” noting that leak investigations typically look into government officials who may have disclosed state secrets or classified documents, while journalists “who receive and publish such information have typically only been involved as potential witnesses.”

THE ATLANTIC REPORTER BEHIND KASH PATEL REPORT SAYS SHE’S SINCE BEEN ‘INUNDATED’ BY SOURCES REAFFIRMING CLAIMS

FBI Assistant Director for Public Affairs Ben Williamson said the MS NOW report is “false” and a journalist is not being investigated. 

“The journalist is not being investigated — false. Every time there’s a publication of false claims by anonymous sources that gets called out, the media plays the victim via investigations that do not exist,” Williamson posted on X. 

Top Patel advisor Erica Knight dismissed the report. 

However, The Atlantic called the alleged probe “an outrageous attack” on the First Amendment. 

“If confirmed to be true, an FBI criminal leak investigation targeting our reporter would represent an outrageous attack on the free press and the First Amendment itself. We will defend The Atlantic staff vigorously; we will not be intimidated by illegitimate investigations or other acts of politically motivated retaliation; we will continue to cover the FBI professionally, fairly, and thoroughly; and we will continue to practice journalism in the public interest,” editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg said in a statement. 

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MS NOW, which published Williamson’s denial in its report, did not immediately respond to a request for additional comment. 

When reached for comment, the FBI directed Fox News Digital to Williamson’s X post. 

Patel’s lawsuit states, “Defendants published the Article with actual malice, despite being expressly warned, hours before publication, that the central allegations were categorically false; despite having abundant publicly available information contradicting those allegations; despite obvious and fatal defects in their own sourcing; despite The Atlantic’s well-documented, long-running editorial animus toward Director Patel; despite a request for additional time to respond that Defendants refused to honor.”

The Atlantic said in a statement, “We stand by our reporting on Kash Patel, and we will vigorously defend The Atlantic and our journalists against this meritless lawsuit.”

Fitzpatrick has said that since her report was published, she has been “inundated” with responses, including from government officials, reaffirming her reporting. 

An FBI spokesperson previously told Fox News Digital, “Doubling down on defamatory lies doesn’t make them true, despite the obsession with creating a distraction from the record-breaking, historic success of this FBI.”

Fox News Digital’s Hanna Panreck contributed to this report.