The Propaganda FilesFox Business Airs Kevin O'Leary Claim That Data Center Opponents Are Chinese Proxies
On Mornings with Maria, Kevin O'Leary said without evidence that opponents of his Utah data center project, including named activist groups, were proxies for the Chinese government sabotaging US AI.
The claim painted left-leaning local opponents of a tech project as agents of a foreign adversary.
What was reported
On Mornings with Maria, Kevin O'Leary said without evidence that opponents of his Utah data center project, including named activist groups, were proxies for the Chinese government sabotaging US AI.
What actually happened
O'Leary later posted that he had no evidence the named groups or individuals were funded by China. In late June 2026, Maria Bartiromo and hosts on several other Fox News and Fox Business shows read statements that Fox News Media knew of no such evidence. Some of the statements included an apology for the error.
The proof
O'Leary's own walk-back and Fox News Media's on-air statements.
The receipt. Copy this and paste it anywhere:
Fox Business Airs Kevin O'Leary Claim That Data Center Opponents Are Chinese Proxies — Retracted. O'Leary's own walk-back and Fox News Media's on-air statements. Full file: https://www.thepropagandafiles.com/case/fox-oleary-data-center-opponents-china/
Original reporting
- Business Insider: O'Leary accuses Utah data center critics of being Chinese agents (secondary)https://www.businessinsider.com/kevin-oleary-accused-data-center-critics-chinese-agent-utah-locals-2026-5
Corrections, findings & records
- Status: Fox News's on-air apologyhttps://www.status.news/p/fox-news-kevin-o-leary-maria-bartiromo-apology
- Mediaite: Fox delivers on-air apology over O'Leary claimshttps://www.mediaite.com/media/news/fox-news-delivers-on-air-apology-over-kevin-olearys-unsubstantiated-claims-linking-opponents-of-his-data-center-project-to-china/
- Fox 13 Utah: O'Leary walks back China accusationshttps://www.fox13now.com/news/local-news/box-elder-county/kevin-oleary-walks-back-accusations-that-data-center-opponents-are-funded-by-china
Archived copies
Stories get edited after publication. These open the Internet Archive's earliest saved copy of each original.
- Archived copy: Business Insider: O'Leary accuses Utah data center critics of being Chinese agents (secondary)https://web.archive.org/web/2/https://www.businessinsider.com/kevin-oleary-accused-data-center-critics-chinese-agent-utah-locals-2026-5