A rumor users shared online in January 2026 claimed that cable news network MS NOW, formerly MSNBC, broadcast an artificial intelligence-enhanced photo of slain Minneapolis intensive care nurse Alex Pretti. According to users’ social media posts, the image presented a more attractive version of Pretti, who cared for critically ill veterans for the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
Federal immigration agents fatally shot Pretti, 37, on a Minneapolis street on Jan. 24 — a killing captured on video by multiple witnesses, igniting a wave of renewed protests of the immigration enforcement tactics authorized by President Donald Trump’s administration.
Readers emailed us to ask about MS NOW featuring an AI-enhanced image and searched Snopes’ website for more information. In short, it was true that the network aired an inauthentic image of Pretti.
“we just posted what we found on the internet” - da news
“It doesn’t matter if what we say is true or heavily biased, as long as it gets attention” - every mainstream nedia journalist