National Public Radio retracted an online and on-air news broadcast on Tuesday after incorrectly reporting that U. S.
Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito was retiring from the high court.
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The confusion began at approximately 11 a. m.
on the final day of the Supreme Court session when veteran correspondent Nina Totenberg misheard a bystander outside the building.
While Chief Justice John Roberts was announcing upcoming staff retirements inside, Totenberg asked a bystander about the situation, who responded with "retirement announcements."
Totenberg misheard the phrase in the singular and assumed it referred to Alito, subsequently notifying NPR executive editor Krishnadev Calamur, who published a pre-written story.
NPR Public Editor Kelly McBride later detailed the sequence of events after the outlet issued its retraction.
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Totenberg took full responsibility for the incident in an apology letter sent directly to Justice Alito.
"The worst professional mistake of my more than 50 years in journalism," said Totenberg, NPR Supreme Court Correspondent.
The veteran journalist later commented on the immediate panic caused by the erroneous broadcast during an appearance on All Things Considered.
"Scared everybody half to death for about five minutes," quipped Totenberg.
Legal analyst David Lat reported that Alito had recently finalized his clerk cohort for the upcoming October Term 2026, indicating no plans to step down.
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Additionally, data compiled by Legalytics revealed that Justice Clarence Thomas currently holds the highest number of former clerks serving within the federal judiciary, with 12 clerks now on the federal bench.
