Multiple Fox News and Fox Business programs issued rare on-air apologies after “Shark Tank” star Kevin O’Leary made unsupported claims about alleged Chinese funding tied to his Utah data center project. O’Leary later posted a clarification saying he has “no ev
For days, Kevin O’Leary’s Utah data center project was wrapped up in a single, explosive thread: claims that his opponents were backed by China.
Then the broadcasts started walking it back.
At the end of Saturday’s “The Big Weekend Show. ” host Johnny “Joey” Jones clarified and apologized for what O’Leary said on that program on May 24. Jones told viewers that O’Leary “made certain claims relating to the opponents of his project.” He then said O’Leary had corrected the record. adding that O’Leary explained he has “no evidence” that the Alliance for a Better Utah. Josh Kanter or Taylor Knuth are funded by China or the Chinese Communist Party.
Jones also said Fox News Media is “likewise aware of no evidence” that those groups or individuals are funded by. acting in the direction of. or in coordination with Chinese interests in opposing O’Leary’s project. The host closed the segment by stating, “Fox News Media also apologizes for the error.”.
The same message landed elsewhere on the network within days of one another, underscoring how quickly the correction spread once O’Leary’s position changed.
Kayleigh McEnany, the former Trump White House press secretary, issued the apology for O’Leary’s comments on “Saturday in America.” The apology also aired on Fox Business during Maria Bartiromo’s “Mornings With Maria” on Friday, and it was further featured during “The Big Money Show.”
The shift began with O’Leary’s own statement on X on Thursday. where he posted a clarification directly addressing the substance of his earlier remarks. He wrote: “Recently I appeared on various news programs and would like to clarify that I have no evidence that Alliance for a Better Utah. Elevate Strategies. Gabrielle Finlayson. Taylor Knuth or Josh Kanter are funded by China or the Chinese Communist Party.”.
In other words, what Fox Media and multiple hosts corrected on air was not treated as a minor wording tweak. It was presented as a claim that had run ahead of evidence—one that the network acknowledged it could not support.
The sequence mattered because the claims weren’t framed as generic skepticism about a controversial Utah project. They were specific enough to point viewers toward a foreign-funding allegation: that named opponents and associated figures were funded by China or the Chinese Communist Party.
Once O’Leary said he had “no evidence,” the on-air apologies followed—first as a clarification and correction of the record, and then, across multiple programs, as an acknowledgment from Fox News Media that it was “aware of no evidence” for the claim it had aired.
Fox News Fox Business Kevin O’Leary on-air apology China Chinese Communist Party Utah data center project Alliance for a Better Utah Josh Kanter Taylor Knuth Kayleigh McEnany Maria Bartiromo Johnny Joey Jones