Estimated read time: 4-5 minutes
- Data center opponents sued Kevin O'Leary and Fox News for defamation.
- O'Leary accused them of Chinese ties, later retracting without evidence.
- Fox News apologized; both parties plan to defend against the lawsuit.
SALT LAKE CITY — Several opponents of the Box Elder County data center project have sued Kevin O'Leary and the Fox News Network for defamation after the businessman claimed opponents had links to China.
O'Leary, who is behind the controversial Stratos Project Area in Box Elder County, suggested that several opponents of the plan had ties to the Chinese government during a May 11 interview with Fox News host Maria Bartiromo. The critics rejected those claims, and O'Leary later backed off on June 25 in a social media post, saying he had no evidence tying two Utah groups and several Utahns to China or the Chinese Communist Party.
Bartiromo apologized the following day, saying the network was not aware of any evidence to back up the claims.
"Fox News Media apologizes for the error," she said.
But several of those targeted by the allegations — the Alliance for a Better Utah, Elevate Strategies, Joshua Kanter and Gabrielle Finlayson — sued both entities in U.S. District Court for the District of Utah, saying O'Leary engaged in a "weekslong smear campaign" against them. The lawsuit claims Fox was "instrumental" in the effort.
The lawsuit describes the Alliance for a Better Utah as a Salt Lake-based nonprofit, and Elevate Strategies as a political consulting firm principally located in Utah. Kanter is the founder of the Alliance for a Better Utah and a board member, while Finlayson is a founder and member of Elevate Strategies. Both reside in Utah.
"No American should have to fear having their livelihood destroyed because a TV businessman falsely branded them a foreign agent on national television," said Matthew Platkin, a former attorney general of New Jersey who is representing the plaintiffs. "Our clients were exercising their right to express their opinions about the future of their community. Rather than respond to their concerns, Kevin O'Leary chose to launch a national smear campaign built on absurd falsehoods that Fox News repeatedly affirmed and amplified."
A lawyer for O'Leary said the businessman plans to defend the lawsuit "vigorously and when appropriate, intends to bring appropriate counterclaims."
"He clarified his remarks weeks ago and invited these organizations and individuals to sit down with him and discuss the project directly. They declined," Jeffrey Neiman said. "Offered dialogue, they chose a courtroom — because this was never about reputation. It is a cash grab, and the second one: Within days of the statements at issue, the plaintiffs were fundraising off of them."
Fox News Media also said it would fight back in court.
"Fox News Media publicly corrected the record on every program where on-air guest Kevin O'Leary's comments were made, all of which was extensively publicized," the company said. "We will vigorously defend against this lawsuit."
The lawsuit details multiple media appearances O'Leary made on various shows beginning on May 11, when he told Bartiromo that "he and a purported team of data scientists ... had discovered that the protests (against the data center) were orchestrated by 'two cells inside of Utah' operating on behalf of the (Chinese Communist Party)." It claims that O'Leary identified both the Alliance for a Better Utah and Elevate Strategies and referred to Kanter and Finlayson by name.
Plaintiffs claim Bartiromo "legitimized O'Leary's statements, affirming that his conclusions were consistent with stories Fox previously ran about one particular individual, unaffiliated with plaintiffs, who allegedly was connected to the CCP."
Clips from the interview were shared by O'Leary on multiple social media accounts, according to the lawsuit.
Plaintiffs say they sent a legal demand to O'Leary on June 5. In an interview on June 10, O'Leary told a local news outlet: "I don't know who's doing this. But this is not normal, and I'm going to find out," according to the lawsuit, which called his June 25 statement "an untimely and insufficient attempt to avoid liability for his obvious misconduct."
At the time the lawsuit was filed, the plaintiffs alleged that at least three of O'Leary's appearances were still available to access on "Fox-controlled platforms and via Fox-affiliated YouTube accounts."
The plaintiffs allege the remarks are defamatory and have caused "enormous" damage to their reputation because of the reach of Fox's channels and O'Leary's following. The lawsuit claims that several elected officials in Utah — including Sen. Mike Lee and state Sen. Todd Weiler — shared social media posts repeating the allegations.
After O'Leary retracted his statements, Weiler took to social media to say: "Oops. I was duped. Sorry everyone."
The lawsuit claims the Alliance for a Better Utah's fundraising efforts have been impacted by the allegations, and states that Elevate Strategies lost "current and prospective clients, who have terminated or declined to enter into business relationships ... because of the false accusations that the firm operates as an agent of the Chinese government."
"I spent years building my reputation, my business and the trust of my community. In just weeks, Kevin O'Leary tore it all down with lies," Finlayson said in a statement. "Those lies have real, long-lasting consequences."
The plaintiffs have asked for a jury trial, and to be awarded punitive damages as well as compensatory damages to address "reputational harm, emotional distress" and lost economic opportunities.
