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By Jana Winter<\/p>\n
April 20 (Reuters) – FBI Director Kash Patel filed a defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic and its reporter Sarah Fitzpatrick following the publication of an article on Friday alleging the director had a drinking problem that could pose a \u200cthreat to national security.<\/p>\n
The magazine’s story, initially titled \u201cKash Patel’s Erratic Behavior Could Cost Him His Job,” cited more than two dozen \u200canonymous sources expressing concern at Patel\u2019s \u201cconspicuous inebriation and unexplained absences\u201d that \u201calarmed officials at the FBI and the Department of Justice.\u201d<\/p>\n
The article, which The Atlantic subsequently titled \u201cThe FBI Director Is \u200bMIA\u201d in its online version, reported that during Patel\u2019s tenure, the FBI had to reschedule early meetings \u201cas a result of his alcohol-fueled nights\u201d and that Patel \u201cis often away or unreachable, delaying time-sensitive decisions needed to advance investigations.\u201d<\/p>\n
In The Atlantic’s story, the White House, the Department of Justice and Patel denied the allegations. The article included a statement from the FBI attributed to Patel, \u201cPrint it, all false, I\u2019ll see you in court\u2014bring your checkbook.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Atlantic’s story is \u200ca lie,\u201d Patel said in an interview with \u2060Reuters. \u201cThey were given the truth before they published, and they chose to print falsehoods anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n
“We stand by our reporting on Kash Patel, and we will vigorously defend The Atlantic and our journalists against this meritless lawsuit,” The \u2060Atlantic said in a statement.<\/p>\n
Reuters could not independently establish the accuracy of the article or why the publication changed the title.<\/p>\n
Patel’s complaint says that while The Atlantic is free to criticize the leadership of the FBI, \u201cthey crossed the legal line\u201d by publishing an article “replete with false and obviously fabricated allegations designed to destroy \u200bDirector \u200bPatel\u2019s reputation and drive him from office.\u201d<\/p>\n
The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court for the \u200bDistrict of Columbia, seeks $250 million in damages.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit alleges The Atlantic ignored the \u200cFBI\u2019s denials and did not respond to a Friday letter from Patel\u2019s lawyer Jesse Binnall to senior editors and The Atlantic\u2019s legal department asking for more time to refute the 19 allegations the reporter told the FBI\u2019s press office she would be publishing.<\/p>\n
The letter, which Reuters has seen, was sent shortly before 4 p.m. on Friday and the story was published at 6:20 p.m., according to the complaint. Reuters could not establish how or if The Atlantic responded to Binnall’s request.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit alleges the publication acted with \u201cactual malice,\u201d a legal standard that requires public figures such as Patel to show the publisher knowingly \u200cprinted false information or recklessly ignored doubts about its accuracy.<\/p>\n
\u201cDefendants’ conscious decision to ignore \u200bthe detailed, specific, and substantive refutations in the Pre-Publication Letter, and their refusal to \u200bgive a reasonable amount of time for the FBI and Director \u200bPatel to respond, is among the strongest possible evidence of actual malice,\u201d the lawsuit says.<\/p>\n
The lawsuit is the latest \u200cinstance of a Trump administration figure suing a media outlet. \u200bA judge dismissed Trump\u2019s lawsuit against \u200bCNN for describing election denialism as \u201cthe big lie.” Judges also dismissed Trump’s lawsuits against the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal. Trump has refiled his lawsuit against the New York Times and may refile against the Wall Street Journal.<\/p>\n
He has also \u200bsecured some settlements. ABC News agreed to settle a case \u200cfor $15 million plus $1 million in legal fees. Paramount Global agreed to pay $16 million for what the Trump administration called \u201cdeceptive editing\u201d \u200bof a CBS News interview with his opponent in the 2024 election, Kamala Harris.<\/p>\n
(Reporting by Jana Winter in Washington; Additional reporting by Jonathan Stempel \u200bin New York; Editing by Michael Learmonth, Lisa Shumaker and Alistair Bell)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n