CNBC says it aired “unconfirmed” report on tariffs

CNBC on Monday acknowledged that it aired a banner containing unconfirmed information about President Trump’s economic plans amid widespread market uncertainty stemming from the tariffs he announced last week, reports Dominick Mastrangelo of The Hill.

Mastrangelo reports, “‘As we were chasing the news of the market moves in real time, we aired unconfirmed information in a banner,’ a spokesperson for the network told The Hill on Monday afternoon. ‘Our reporters quickly made a correction on air.’

“As markets opened on Monday, a major sell-off ensued on Wall Street amid intensifying concerns about the negative impact Trump’s tariffs could have on consumer goods and the broader American economy.

“Amid the market upheaval, a high-profile user on the social platform X named ‘Walter Bloomberg’ published a message saying ‘TRUMP IS CONSIDERING A 90-DAY PAUSE IN TARIFFS FOR ALL COUNTRIES EXCEPT CHINA.’

“That post was apparently based on an interview given by White House National Economic Council Director Kevin Hassett to Fox News.”

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Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.