Smoke over Caracas after US military attacks on military bases. US troops kidnapped the Venezuelan president and his wife from their residence without losing a soldier.Image: keystone
Jan 5, 2026, 7:54 p.mJan 5, 2026, 7:54 p.m
The “Washington Post” and the “New York Times” already knew about an upcoming major secret operation by the US military before the kidnapping of Venezuelan President Maduro. However, both media companies refrained from reporting on it – to protect the US troops involved. This reports Semafor.com.
The news portal relies on “two people who are aware of the information flow between the government and the media companies”. Semafor was founded in 2022 by the former CEO of the Bloomberg media group and a Buzzfeed News editor-in-chief and is considered a reputable source.
US attack on Venezuela
Video: Watson/Reuters
Semafor does not describe how and why the two traditional newspapers came across the highly explosive and confidential information in advance. What is known is that Parliament was not informed in advance. On the contrary. At a confidential briefing before Christmas, Foreign Minister Rubio and War Minister Hegseth denied any deployment of troops on Venezuelan soil: “We were misled,” Ami Bera told Fox News. Bera, a Democrat, sits on the House Select Committee on Intelligence.
“This is simply not the type of mission that you announce in advance – because that jeopardizes success,” Marco Rubio said at the joint press conference with President Trump. He added smugly to the Secretary of State’s statements: “Congress has a tendency to pass on information.”
It is therefore unlikely that the government informed the Washington Post and the New York Times before the surprise coup.
A leak or another failure in security precautions is more likely than a conscious communication strategy. The US government did this before the bombing of Houthi positions in Yemen. At that time, a journalist was invited to the Signal chat, where security-related details were discussed. If the information found its way to prestigious editorial offices in another way – through a leak – then that doesn’t speak for the government either. In this case, the leak would have to be found in the inner circle of the government or even in the military.
It happens again and again that media companies hold back explosive stories in order not to endanger their own soldiers or a government mission – for example last August, when the USA and Russia prisoners exchanged and the New York Times got wind of it. The NYT also withdrew a possible primer.
Jimmy Kimmel wins an award – and thanks Trump, of all people
Video: watson/Lucas Zollinger