Claim:
In April 2026, MS NOW suspended TV host Rachel Maddow without pay after she said on "The Rachel Maddow Show" that the U.S. would be "much better off" had one of U.S. President Donald Trump's alleged assassins succeeded.
Rating:
Labeled Satire (About this rating?)
In late April 2026, social media users alleged MS NOW had suspended host Rachel Maddow without pay after she said on the air that the U.S. would be "much better off" had one of U.S. President Donald Trump's alleged assassins succeeded.
For example, on April 27, an X user posted (archived) in part, "Rachel Maddow just got suspended without pay after openly cheering for Trump's assassination — told her audience America would be 'much better off' if one of the gunman had blown his head off!" The post featured an alleged quote from the cable news network saying, "MS NOW doesn't condone that kind of violent rhetoric." An Instagram user posted (archived) a screenshot of the X post.
(@mcafeenew/X)
Some users seemed to believe the rumor about Maddow's supposed suspension. Snopes readers also contacted us to investigate its legitimacy.
The rumor was entirely fictional. MS NOW did not suspend Maddow, nor did she make the remarks about Trump's assassins.
A search for the text from the reader's screenshot located an April 27 post (archived) on the America's Last Line of Defense (ALLOD) Facebook page, which has historically described its content as satire.
(America's Last Line of Defense/Facebook)
The ALLOD Facebook page displays a bio reading in part, "Nothing on this page is real." That same disclaimer appears in a small "S" for "Satire" label in the lower right corner of the post's image, one showing Maddow broadcasting her show.
The ALLOD post featured a fabricated MS NOW statement, reading:
Rachel Maddow was suspended without pay after she told her audience the country would be "much better off" had one of Trump's attempted assassins succeeded.
"MS Now doesn't condone that kind of violent rhetoric," the network said in a written statement, "Rachel Maddow, and all of our hosts, are aware of the guidelines and the consequences for crossing them."
The length of her suspension wasn't disclosed.
Snopes contacted MS NOW to ask if the network wished to comment on the false rumor and we will update this article if we receive further information.
White House Correspondents' Association dinner shooting
The fabricated Maddow rumor spread in the days following the April 25 shooting at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner in Washington, D.C.
Federal authorities charged 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of California with attempting to assassinate Trump, as well as illegally transporting a firearm across state lines and discharging a firearm during a crime of violence.
Officials said a bullet struck a Secret Service agent's ballistic vest during the shooting. No one was seriously injured or killed.
For further reading, we previously investigated whether Maddow reported that Walmart planned to leave the U.S. due to Trump's tariffs.
Sources:
Burke, Minyvonne, et al. "Suspect in White House Correspondents' Association Dinner Shooting to Remain in Custody." NBC News, 30 Apr. 2026, https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/suspect-white-house-correspondents-association-dinner-shooting-court-rcna342852.
Khalil, Shaimaa, et al. "Suspect Charged with Attempted Assassination of Trump at Correspondents' Dinner." BBC News, 28 Apr. 2026, https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cew7wez72vxo.
