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Maria Bartiromo: 5 things to know as Fox News megastar forced to issue embarrassing apology; here's what went wrong
Maria Bartiromo apologized on-air after Kevin O’Leary made false claims about opponents of his Utah data center project, which he later retracted.
Maria Bartiromo, who is one of the most prominent figures on Fox News, was compelled to deliver a humiliating on-air apology after Shark Tank celebrity Kevin O’Leary made a baseless assertion during her program.
Bartiromo paused her Fox Business Network broadcast on Friday morning to extend a public apology for O’Leary, who inaccurately claimed in May that those opposing his Utah data center were receiving financial support from China.
“Mr. O’Leary has now corrected the record and explained that he has no evidence that the Alliance for a Better Utah, Elevate Strategies, Josh Kanter, Taylor Knuth, or Gabriel Finlayson are funded by China or the Chinese Communist Party,” Bartiromo stated.
“Fox News Media is likewise aware of no evidence that they are funded by, acting at the direction of, or coordinating with Chinese interests in opposing Kevin O’Leary’s project. Fox News Media apologizes for the error.”
Bartiromo reveals retraction issued by O'Leary
Bartiromo showcased on-screen the retraction issued by O'Leary on social media, where he clarified that he possessed “no evidence” linking those opposing the extensive data center project to China or indicating they were receiving funding from there.
In contrast to Bartiromo, O'Leary did not extend an apology for propagating the inaccurate claims regarding the opponents of the Utah initiative.
“Who would want us to stop building our electrical grid? Who would want to stop us from having the computing capacity to develop AI? Which adversary would want that? There’s only one. It’s China,” O'Leary stated during his May appearance on Bartiromo's program, donning a "Utah National Security" cap.
Know about previous on-air apology
Bartiromo was not the sole Fox personality to deliver an on-air apology following O'Leary's retraction of his statements.
The host of The Big Weekend Show, Johnny Joey Jones, also presented a similarly phrased apology after O'Leary "corrected the record" regarding remarks he made during a May 24 appearance on the show. Additionally, Kayleigh McEnany offered an apology during Saturday in America.
