Errors by Fox News and Reuters, Bangladeshi media failed to verify

At least 31 Bangladeshi media outlets recently published reports claiming that the United States is suspending all types of visas for citizens of 75 countries, including Bangladesh. However, a fact-check shows that from January 21, the United States is suspending only immigrant visas for these 75 countries, not all visa categories. Misleading information from news agency Reuters and American news outlet Fox News contributed to the inaccurate coverage by Bangladeshi media.

Citing Fox News, Bangla daily Jugantor ran the headline: “United States suspends all types of visas for 75 countries including Bangladesh.” Several other outlets (1, 2, 3, 4) published similar reports based on the same source. The daily Kalbela’s headline read: “United States suspends all types of visas for 75 countries.”

RTV ran the report under the headline: “Announcement to shut down all U.S. visas for citizens of 75 countries including Bangladesh.” The daily Sangram used the same headline. Citing both Fox News and Reuters, Bangladesh Times and Sobar Desh published reports making the same claim. Citing Fox News and Reuters, The Daily Star wrote: “The Trump administration is suspending all visa processing for applicants from 75 countries, a State Department spokesperson said on Wednesday.” Based on the same sources, Ekattor TV, Bangla Tribune, Ajker Patrika and Amader Shomoy.com published reports making identical claims (1, 2). 

Similarly, without specifying the visa type, Dhaka Post cited Fox News and wrote: “The United States is completely suspending visas for citizens of 75 countries worldwide, including Bangladesh. From Jan. 21, people from these countries will no longer receive U.S. visas.”

Somoy published the same claim using the same source. Several other outlets also published reports citing Fox News. The daily Ittefaq wrote: “The United States is completely shutting down visas for citizens of 75 countries worldwide.” Using the same source, The daily Inqilab wrote: “The country has decided to stop issuing all types of visas for citizens of 75 countries, including Bangladesh.” Janakantha and Dhaka Mail also mentioned the suspension of “all types” of U.S. visas in their reports.

Citing Reuters, The Business Standard wrote in its headline: “Visa suspension operations begin Jan. 21 indefinitely.” The outlet also published a video report citing Reuters and Fox News. However, the headline did not specify the visa type. The daily Azadi’s headline read: “United States shutting visas for 75 countries including Bangladesh and Pakistan.” Neither outlet specified the visa category in their headlines or reports.

Several outlets published reports citing only Fox News (1, 2, 3, 4, 5), or both Reuters and Fox News (1, 2), while keeping the visa type unclear. Risingbd.com cited Fox News along with the online edition of The U.S. Sun. Kaler Kantho reported that it was unclear whether the temporary U.S. visa suspension applied to all visa categories. The outlet also noted that U.S. President’s aide and White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt shared the Fox News report on social media platform X.

What the U.S. State Department says

Dismislab found a related news update published in the “U.S. Visa News” section of the U.S. State Department’s website. The notice, updated on January 14, said: “President Trump has made clear that immigrants must be financially self-sufficient and not be a financial burden to Americans. The Department of State is undergoing a full review of all policies, regulations, and guidance to ensure that immigrants from these high-risk countries do not utilize welfare in the United States or become a public charge.”

Providing a list of 75 countries, the notice said: “Effective January 21, 2026, the Department of State is pausing all visa issuances to immigrant visa applicants who are nationals of the following countries.” Bangladesh is included in the list.

It further said that under this directive, nationals of these countries will still be able to apply for immigrant visas, attend visa interviews and have interviews scheduled by the State Department. “However, no immigrant visas will be issued while the suspension is in effect. Existing valid visas are not being canceled, and the suspension does not apply to non-immigrant visas.”

On January 14, the U.S. State Department said on its verified X (former Twitter) account: “The State Department will pause immigrant visa processing from 75 countries whose migrants take welfare from the American people at unacceptable rates. The freeze will remain active until the U.S. can ensure that new immigrants will not extract wealth from the American people.” The post was later reposted by State Department spokesperson Tommy Pigott from his verified X account.

How Fox News and Reuters Started the Error

The Bangladeshi media outlets spreading the misinformation mainly cited two sources: U.S. media outlet Fox News and British news agency Reuters. All 31 Bangladeshi media reports cited Fox News, while 13 cited Reuters. Only one cited The U.S. Sun. Several outlets (1, 2) said Fox News first published the report citing a State Department document. Sobar Desh reported that after Fox News published the news, Reuters confirmed it in a follow-up report.

Reviewing Fox News’ claim of suspending “all types of visas,” it was found that Fox News’ headline read: “US freezes all visa processing for 75 countries, including Somalia, Russia, Iran.” However, the opening paragraph of the report clarified that the suspension applied only to immigrant visa processing. Fox News Digital initially claimed to have reviewed a State Department memo. In contrast, Reuters’ headline clearly mentioned immigrant visas, stating: “Trump administration to suspend immigrant visa processing for 75 nations.”

Dismislab found that both Fox News and Reuters edited their reports twice after publication. In Fox News’ first version, both the headline and the opening paragraph said that all visa processing was suspended. In later versions, the text was corrected to “immigrant visas,” but the headline continued to say “all visas.”

The first version of Reuters’ report, which cited Fox News as its source, contained the same error. Its original headline read: “US to suspend visa processing for 75 nations next week, Fox News reports.” Reuters wrote: “The Trump administration is suspending all visa processing for visitors from 75 countries starting January 21, Fox News reported on Wednesday, citing a memo from the U.S. State Department.” In later versions, Reuters added the word “immigrant” and changed the headline to: “US to suspend immigrant visa processing for 75 nations, State Department says.” The U.S. Sun also did not mention “immigrant visas” in its report citing Fox News.

Although Fox News and Reuters corrected their errors in later versions, at least 31 Bangladeshi media outlets had not updated their reports at the time of data collection for this report. 

Meanwhile, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt reposted an Associated Press report on her verified X account about the suspension of U.S. immigrant visas. The post said: “The United States is suspending immigrant visa processing for 75 countries whose nationals are considered likely to rely on government or public assistance in the United States.” However, 4 hours and 53 minutes earlier, she had reposted a Fox News report stating: “The United States has suspended all visa processing for 75 countries including Somalia, Russia and Iran.”

In short, media reports claiming that the United States has suspended all types of visas for 75 countries, including Bangladesh, are incorrect. Only immigrant visas have been suspended for these 75 countries, not all visa categories. A combination of U.S. media, a British news agency and official statements contributed to the spread of confusion in Bangladeshi media.

The main reason for the confusion was that Bangladeshi outlets accepted incorrect information from major organizations like Reuters and Fox News without verification. This points to weaknesses in media verification practices. In the rush to publish quickly, many outlets failed to properly verify the news and ended up spreading the same error. As stated in the Reuters Handbook of Journalism: “Accuracy, as well as balance, always takes precedence over speed. It’s better to be late than wrong..” 

Disclaimer: The original version of this fact-check report was published in Bengali on Dismislab’s Bengali website on January 16, 2026. The English translation was completed later; however, to maintain time accuracy and avoid any potential misinterpretation, the English version has been published with the original publication date.