ABC News quietly revises deleted report scrutinizing Don Jr and Eric Trump's business dealings

WASHINGTON, DC: ABC News has republished a revised version of its report on President Donald Trump's sons, Donald Trump Jr and Eric Trump, after removing the original article over concerns about its accuracy.

The updated report appeared on Friday evening, October 9, with a new headline, an editor's note and corrections to claims about business investments and government contracts.

The original report was published on Wednesday afternoon and taken down less than 24 hours later without an immediate public explanation. 

ABC News changes headline after removing original Trump sons report

The original article carried the headline, "Trump sons' investments have won billions in Pentagon contracts since his election."

It examined the business dealings of Donald Trump Jr and Eric Trump, but the report was removed after criticism of its accuracy.

The original version remains accessible through the Internet Archive's Wayback Machine.

ABC News later republished the report with a different headline: "New shipyard announced amid earlier Democratic concerns about potential conflicts of interest."

The revised article included an editor's note acknowledging errors involving descriptions of company investments, government contracts and the chronology of events. However, the decision to remove the original report without an immediate public explanation had already drawn criticism from media industry figures.

The changes followed public objections from Alexa Henning, a spokesperson for 1789 Capital, the venture firm where Donald Trump Jr serves as a partner.

Henning challenged the original report's description of the firm's investments and its characterization of the Trump brothers' involvement in other companies.

1789 Capital disputes ABC News' Anduril investment claims

One of the key corrections concerned defense contractor Anduril and the amount of money attributed to 1789 Capital.

The original report incorrectly attributed a $2.5 billion investment in Anduril to the venture firm. The revised article clarified that the figure represented the total funding Anduril raised last year, rather than an investment made by 1789 Capital.

Henning had publicly disputed the original report's description of the firm's stake in the defense company.

"1789 Capital does not have a 'major stake' in Anduril," she said. She also accused the original report of confusing two different financial activities while criticizing the journalist behind it.

"Here's a small lesson, that I also explained to ABC, the 'reporter' who is a complete idiot conflated raising funds with investment by 1789. Those are two separate actions," Henning wrote.

The revised article also clarified Donald Trump Jr's role in the venture firm. According to a spokesperson for 1789 Capital, he does not sit on the three-person committee responsible for making investment decisions.

The updated report states that 1789 Capital previously invested $50 million in Anduril, which ABC News valued at approximately $60 billion.

These changes altered important details in the original report, particularly the distinction between the total funding raised by a company and the amount invested by a specific firm.

The editor's note acknowledged the errors, while the new headline shifted the focus toward a shipyard announcement and earlier Democratic concerns about potential conflicts of interest.

Donald Trump Jr mocks Gavin Newsom after ABC News deletes article

The removal of the original report also caught the attention of Donald Trump Jr, who responded on X after the article disappeared from ABC News' website.

Rather than focusing only on the report's claims about his family's business dealings, Trump Jr used the development to take a swipe at California Gov Gavin Newsom and his presidential ambitions.

"ABC deleted this article in less than 24 hours because it's false. Sounds about as long as your presidential campaign would last," he wrote.

Bill Ackman questions ABC News' handling of deleted report

Billionaire Bill Ackman also criticized ABC News over its decision to remove the original article without issuing a public correction at the time.

Ackman, the founder and CEO of Pershing Square Capital Management, argued that quietly taking down a report was not enough to address the publication's errors"This is bad. @ABC must take responsibility for their failed journalism. Basic journalistic ethics requires it," Ackman wrote on social media.

He further criticized the way the network handled the withdrawal, writing, "A quiet unexplained withdrawal of a false article does not constitute a proper error correction."