NPR retracted a story Tuesday stating that Supreme Court Justice Samuel Alito was retiring, declaring that it made an error and that there had been no such announcement.

NPR posted the story moments after the Supreme Court finished its term, citing a statement from the press office.

However, court spokeswoman Patricia McCabe told Politico that "NPR's reporting regarding Justice Alito is inaccurate. And their reporting that there was any kind of court statement is inaccurate."

NPR editor in chief Tommy Evans admitted that the inaccurate report was published due "to a misunderstanding," the New York Post reported.

He said, "As soon as the error was realized, the story was retracted and removed from NPR's website, and an on-air correction was broadcast," adding that longtime NPR legal affairs correspondent Nina Totenberg, who wrote the story, had "reached out to Justice Alito to apologize."

Podcast host Katie Miller, the wife of White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, said in a post on X that "this is why you can't trust the legacy media. Published a totally fake story."

Totenberg, 82, has covered the Supreme Court for NPR for more than five decades and is widely regarded as one of the nation's leading legal correspondents. However, she drew scrutiny following the 2020 death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg after it became public that the two had maintained a close personal friendship for decades, according to the Post.

Ginsburg officiated Totenberg's second wedding in 2000, and critics, including NPR's then-public editor Kelly McBride, argued that the relationship should have been disclosed sooner.

Alito, 76, joined the Supreme Court in 2006 after being nominated by then-President George W. Bush to replace retiring Justice Sandra Day O'Connor.

The speculation about Alito's retirement also comes as NPR faces financial headwinds. Congress last year eliminated more than $1 billion in funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, which provides support to public media organizations, including NPR member stations.

Trump had previously signed an executive order directing the end of federal taxpayer funding for public broadcasting.

Although NPR has said direct federal grants account for less than 1% of its operating budget, many of its member stations rely on CPB funding to help pay for NPR programming.

Public media officials have warned that the funding cuts have placed additional financial pressure on local stations, particularly in rural and underserved communities, even though the reduction in funding is currently scheduled to last two years.