Major News Networks Bypass Coverage of Released Fauci Pandemic Diaries

Private journal entries authored by Dr. Anthony Fauci have surfaced revealing his preoccupation with celebrity status during the coronavirus crisis, yet the material received scant coverage from prominent television news organizations. ABC News, NBC News, CBS News, CNN and MSNBC all failed to report on the documents from their weekend release through Monday morning, according to a transcript analysis by Grabien Media. The absence of reporting persists despite the diaries’ public release by Senate Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rand Paul of Kentucky.

Paul, a long-standing Fauci critic who frequently disputed the federal pandemic response and virus origins, unveiled the journals as part of the committee’s investigative oversight. The entries chronicle Fauci’s daily activities throughout 2020, documenting his interactions with President Donald Trump, state governors, international leaders and media figures. The diaries contain observations about Fauci’s celebrity status, suggesting he was “the most famous and talked about person in the country” and detailing his relationships with various media personalities.

Despite gaining significant traction on social media platforms, the story went unmentioned across traditional broadcast morning and evening programs. NBC’s “Nightly News” and “Today” show, ABC’s “World News Tonight” and “Good Morning America,” and CBS’s evening and morning broadcasts all declined coverage. Sunday-morning political programs including ABC’s “This Week,” NBC’s “Meet the Press” and CBS’s “Face the Nation” similarly abstained from reporting the story.

Cable news outlets followed the same pattern through Monday morning, with CNN and MSNBC making no on-air references to Fauci or the diary contents. The CNN blackout proved particularly notable given that anchor Jake Tapper appears repeatedly throughout the private entries, documenting phone conversations, text exchanges and social engagements at Tapper’s Washington residence. Fauci’s diary indicated Tapper had privately expressed concern about whether a CNN interview had created difficulties with the White House.

The diaries contain additional details about Fauci’s relationships with other journalists and figures. After a contentious April 2021 exchange with Ohio Republican Rep. Jim Jordan, CNN’s Dana Bash reportedly texted Fauci expressing support, and Wolf Blitzer allegedly joked that no one would have faulted Fauci for a harsh response to Jordan. One diary entry shows Fauci responding harshly to Atlantic writer Peter Nicholas, who had suggested Fauci felt humiliated over a canceled interview.

Fox News chief political analyst Brit Hume publicly criticized the media silence on the social platform X, questioning whether prominent journalists’ personal connections to Fauci influenced editorial decisions. Networks ABC, NBC, CBS and CNN declined immediate comment when contacted, while MSNBC refused to respond. The documents emerged days before Fauci’s scheduled testimony before the Senate committee following Paul’s subpoena.