FBI Reportedly Investigating Atlantic Journalist Over Kash Patel Story Amid Free Press Alarm

The FBI has reportedly launched a criminal investigation into Sarah Fitzpatrick, an Atlantic journalist who published a bombshell article alleging FBI Director Kash Patel’s erratic behavior, including excessive drinking and unexplained absences from work. Fitzpatrick’s April 17 story cited more than two dozen anonymous sources—current and former FBI officials, national security experts, and lawmakers—expressing concern that Patel’s conduct could jeopardize national security.

MS NOW first revealed the investigation, describing it as highly unusual because it focuses on leaks of nonclassified information rather than classified secrets. According to sources familiar with the probe, FBI agents from an internal threats unit based in Huntsville, Alabama, are leading the case. The FBI has flatly denied the investigation exists. Spokesperson Ben Williamson called the report “completely false” and accused the media of playing the victim whenever “false claims by anonymous sources” are exposed.

The Atlantic’s top editor Jeffrey Goldberg condemned the alleged investigation as an “outrageous attack on the free press and the First Amendment.” He pledged vigorous defense of Fitzpatrick and the magazine, vowing to resist intimidation and continue robust coverage of the FBI.

Investigations targeting journalists are rare and legally fraught. Courts generally protect journalists’ information-gathering under the First Amendment, and compelling reporters to reveal sources typically requires exhausting other avenues first. Yet under Patel’s leadership, the FBI has aggressively pursued reporters. In January, agents raided Washington Post reporter Hannah Natanson’s home seeking leaks of classified information, seizing her devices before a judge barred their examination. Natanson was part of a Pulitzer Prize-winning team exposing Trump administration disruptions to the federal workforce.

More recently, FBI agents investigated New York Times reporter Elizabeth Williamson for allegedly violating stalking laws after she sought an interview with Patel’s girlfriend, country singer Alexis Wilkins. That probe ended without charges.

Patel responded to Fitzpatrick’s article by filing a staggering $250 million defamation lawsuit against The Atlantic, which has vowed to fight back. On social media, Patel dismissed the reporting as “hit piece lies” and boasted that the FBI under his command is “making America safe again.”

Hours after MS NOW’s report about the investigation, Fitzpatrick published a follow-up Atlantic story revealing Patel’s personalized branded bourbon bottles engraved with “KASH PATEL FBI DIRECTOR” and the FBI shield. Sources said Patel distributed these bottles to FBI staff and civilians, blurring official business with personal branding.

This unfolding saga exposes a disturbing pattern of FBI politicization and weaponization under Patel, who appears to be using the bureau’s power to intimidate journalists and shield himself from scrutiny. It is a direct threat to democratic accountability and press freedom at a moment when both are under siege.

We will continue to monitor this story closely. The right to report on government misconduct without fear of retaliation is fundamental to a functioning democracy. If the FBI is indeed investigating a journalist simply for doing their job, that is a crisis demanding immediate public attention and resistance.