NYT, Washington Post, NBC Retract Reports That Giuliani Got FBI Russia Briefing

Former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani speaks during a news conference at the Republican National Committee headquarters in Washington on Nov. 19, 2020. Jacquelyn Martin/AP Photo

The New York Times, The Washington Post, and NBC News have retracted earlier reporting that incorrectly stated former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani was directly warned by the FBI that he was targeted by a Russian intelligence influence operation.

The stories came out after federal investigators executed a search warrant at the home and office of the former New York mayor. The searches were allegedly linked to Giuliani’s dealings in Ukraine, while Giuliani said he believes the search warrant was issued because he allegedly failed to file with the Department of Justice (DOJ) for representing a Ukrainian national or office. He has since denied any wrongdoing.

The Post was the first to report the incorrect information. It also incorrectly stated that One America News had also received a similar warning from the FBI.

“This version has been corrected to remove assertions that OAN and Giuliani received the warnings,” the correction appended on the article states.

The NY Times made its correction on a story about Giuliani’s alleged role in the 2019 recall of ambassador Marie L. Yovanovitch.

“An earlier version of this article misstated whether Rudolph W. Giuliani received a formal warning from the F.B.I. about Russian disinformation. Mr. Giuliani did not receive such a so-called defensive briefing,” the correction states.

Meanwhile, NBC News elaborated on why it corrected the story, saying that a second source disputed the assertions of the first source as the briefing was only prepared for Giuliani and not delivered to him. Both sources were anonymously cited in the article.

“The report was based on a source familiar with the matter, but a second source now says the briefing was only prepared for Giuliani and not delivered to him, in part over concerns it might complicate the criminal investigation of Giuliani,” the NBC News correction reads.

The press offices of The NY Times, the Post, and NBC News didn’t respond by press time to The Epoch Times’ questions about the corrections. Giuliani’s office didn’t respond to a request for comment by press time.

In two statements on Twitter, Giuliani called for the Post and NY Times to reveal their sources for the incorrect information.

“On a Saturday, the Washington Post added this correction to their defamatory story about me,” Giuliani wrote on Twitter. “The Washington Post and the NYT must reveal their sources who lied and targeted an American Citizen. #msnbc, #cnn forgot to mention the corrections today. #fakenews #badpeople.”

In a separate statement, he wrote: “Where did the original false information come from? @MSNBC @CNN @nytimes I couldn’t quite hear your apology?”