Fox News took several hours to report on the release of emails showing Jeffrey Epstein repeatedly mentioning Donald Trump, while competitors CNN and MSNBC covered the story extensively on Wednesday morning. The conservative network eventually addressed the topic vaguely, leaving viewers unaware of its significance.
The emails, released by House Oversight Committee Democrats from Epstein's estate, show the late financier referencing Trump in communications with accomplice Ghislaine Maxwell. In a 2011 exchange, Epstein claimed Trump spent hours at his home with an unnamed victim, calling him a "dog that hasn't barked." Maxwell replied, "I've been thinking about that." Trump has not been accused of wrongdoing and denies involvement in Epstein's crimes.
Fox News correspondent Mark Meredith mentioned the story only at the end of a report on the government reopening, saying "we expect more of the Jeffrey Epstein controversy to make its way back up here to Capitol Hill." He did not specify the email developments, and anchor Harris Faulkner did not follow up.
Later, Fox News's Peter Doocy reported on the emails with a pro-Trump spin, framing them as "selectively leaked." Republicans later identified the redacted victim as Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide in April and never accused Trump of criminal behaviour. The White House noted Giuffre wrote that Trump "couldn't have been friendlier" towards her.
