Did an authentic video show Rachel Maddow crying on air in November 2024 over an Elon Musk meme concerning ownership of MSNBC? No, that's not true: The clip was taken from a June 20, 2018 MSNBC broadcast. Maddow had become emotional while reading a report about babies and young children sent to immigration shelters in South Texas.
The claim appeared in a post (archived here) made on Instagram on November 24, 2024. It opened:
Possibly the greatest video of all time. @msnbc @maddowmaddow
This is what the post looked like at the time of writing this fact check:
(Source: Instagram screenshot taken on Mon Nov 25 19:32:20 2024 UTC)
The post on Instagram is edited so that the context of why Maddow becomes emotional is obscured.
Her reaction, as shown in a longer version posted on YouTube by Guardian News, came as she read details of an Associated Press report on then-President Donald Trump's immigration policies. AP reported on June 20, that "the Trump administration has set up at least three 'tender age' shelters to detain babies and other young children who have been forcibly separated from their parents at the U.S.-Mexico border."
At one point during the actual broadcast, Maddow says, presumably to her producer, "Can we put up the graphic of this?" She pauses, then continues, "Do we have it? No." Then she reads from the report about "tender age shelters," and becomes visibly emotional before signing off.
In the version on Instagram, when Maddow says "Can we put up the graphic of this?" the video is edited, replacing the original with a sexually suggestive meme featuring the NBC logo, posted by Elon Musk on X (archived here) on November 24, 2024. Musk's meme appeared amid rumors, as reported by USA Today and CNN, that MSNBC -- Maddow's network -- was for sale.
The comparison screenshots below show a moment from the actual broadcast on the left and the altered version with the Musk meme inserted on the right.
Also, the screenshots show that the text under the "Breaking News" logo has a different font than MSNBC normally uses, as well as completely different wording:
(Source: Lead Stories screenshots taken on Mon Nov 25 22:32:20 2024 UTC)
Lead Stories fact checked a similar false claim about Rachel Maddow supposedly crying on air over U.S. presidential election results in November 2024.
At the time this fact check was written, PolitiFact had reviewed the same claim.
Additional Lead Stories fact checks on claims concerning Rachel Maddow can be found here. Additional Lead Stories fact checks on claims concerning Elon Musk can be found here.
