Two former senior FBI officials have been taken into custody on charges of allegedly lying to Congress about their involvement in FBI investigations related to Hunter Biden's laptop, according to the US Department of Justice. 

The Details: FBI Director Kash Patel announced the allegations against Nikki Cole Floris, 46, and Bradley Benavides, 56, who surrendered to authorities Friday after a criminal complaint accused each of making materially false statements to the House Judiciary Committee during interviews in 2023. Prosecutors allege both testified that the FBI's Foreign Influence Task Force was not involved in the Hunter Biden investigations. Patel said on X that "documentary evidence, contemporaneous communications, and witness accounts contradict their testimony."

Both face one count under a federal law prohibiting knowingly and willfully making false statements in matters within the jurisdiction of the legislative branch. 

The Complaint: According to a DOJ press release, the charges stem from an investigation into the Foreign Influence Task Force, which was created to help protect US elections from foreign influence operations. The criminal complaint alleges Floris and Benavides falsely minimized or denied their knowledge of and involvement in FBI investigations involving Hunter Biden when questioned by congressional investigators in 2023. The DOJ alleges Floris "routinely" discussed the Hunter Biden investigations with other FBI officials over the course of more than a year. 

About The Officials: Floris and Benavides were leaders of the now-dissolved FBI Foreign Influence Task Force, or FITF, according to the DOJ press release. Floris served as a deputy assistant director from mid-2019 through mid-2022, while Benavides was the task force's section chief through the 2020 election. The case revives controversy surrounding Hunter Biden's laptop, which became a major political issue during the final weeks of the 2020 presidential election. Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a statement: "The weaponization of government goes against the interest of the American people, and public servants, including federal law enforcement officials, cannot lie to Congress and get away with it."

How The Media Covered It: Some media outlets on the left noted that the charges were filed less than two weeks before the Nov. 3 midterm elections. CNN (Lean Left bias) highlighted Republican criticism of the FBI's handling of the Hunter Biden investigation and referenced broader "deep state" narratives promoted by some conservatives. The Washington Examiner (Lean right) emphasized prosecutors' allegations that the FBI's Foreign Influence Task Force was involved in Hunter Biden-related investigations and that Floris and Benavides sought to conceal that role. 

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Wedgewood Polls, a supposed polling site whose findings were republished by mainstream news outlets has said its results were fabricated as part of an "experimental project."

The Statement: Wedgewood reportedly made a statement on Wednesday, after election analysis site FiftyPlusOne confronted the site with evidence that its data was fake. The firm reportedly wrote online, "How easy is it for an entirely fabricated polling firm to gain traction, be taken seriously, and expose how little scrutinization exists in media and in public commentary? The short answer: Far too easy." Wedgewood has since deleted its social media pages.

The Details: According to The New York Times (Lean Left bias), "The pollster had been releasing surveys since June, shifting from one midterm battleground to another." It's still not entirely clear who was running the site. The Washington Examiner (Lean Right) described it as "one of the biggest mysteries in Washington just weeks before the midterm elections."

FCC Statement: FCC chief Brendan Carr said, "Many journalists and broadcasters have been amplifying or airing these Polls without regard to basic journalistic ethics and without informing the public that those Polls lack a scientific, accurate, or even real basis… The FCC takes these issues seriously… Broadcasters are advised to avoid engaging in News Distortions or running Broadcast Hoaxes by airing Polls that would violate their regulatory obligations."

In Media: Findings from the site had been aggregated or written about by mainstream outlets across the spectrum, including Nate Silver (Lean Left bias), The New York Times, Decision Desk HQ, Newsweek (Center), MS NOW (Left), The Center Square (Lean Right), and Mediaite (Lean Left). All of these outlets noted that they had previously referenced the bogus polls in their content, except for MS NOW, which, as of Thursday morning, AllSides did not find coverage from.

For Context: In August, Median Strategies, a "polling company" Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass publicly referenced during her reelection campaign, shut down and admitted all of its "polls" were counterfeit. Median also said its operation was a "social experiment." After the Median story broke, an investigation from Straight Arrow News (Center) revealed "shady" circumstances around Wedgewood, including a lack of information on who ran the site. The firm told Straight Arrow it wanted to keep its dealings private.

Bias Notes: Mediaite and Newsweek, which both previously referenced the site's polls, wrote in their headlines that the site's ambition was to fool news outlets. Axios (Lean Left) and The New York Times framed it as a wider issue for political polling at large. The Washington Times (Lean Right) opened by writing that Wedgewood made the Senate race "in deep-red Mississippi" look like it was "suddenly a toss-up." Hungarian Conservative (Lean Right) wrote in its headline that Wedgewood's "polls" often boosted Democrats in "GOP states."

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