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Jesse Watters says he was joking when he claimed he let air out of now-wife’s tyres (Getty Images for LCPRE)

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Jesse Watters has claimed an anecdote he shared about letting the air out of his now-wife’s tyres while “trying to get [her] to date” him “was a joke”.

The Fox News host, 43, initially shared the story about his wife Emma DiGiovine, 29, during an episode of his panel series The Five earlier this month. During the segment, he told his co-hosts that he once “let the air out of” DiGiovine’s tyres so that she would need to accept his offer of a ride home.

“She couldn’t go anywhere. She needed a lift, I said: ‘Hey, you need a lift?’ She hopped right in the car,” Watters said.

At the time, the TV anchor’s “concerning” recollection sparked criticism on social media, where viewers described the story as “scary” and “disgusting”.

“Jesse Watters of Fox News bragged about deflating a woman’s tyres so she would have to get in his car for a date. That’s disgusting and concerning,” one person wrote.

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On Monday’s episode of The Five, the Fox News host addressed the backlash, and claimed that he had been joking.

Describing the story and subsequent criticism as “Deflategate,” Watters told his co-anchors that the anecdote “was a joke,” before adding: “I never deflated anyone’s tyres,” according to People.

During the show, anchor Greg Gutfeld also said that Watters had clarified he was joking during the initial segment, but that it had been cut. “You even said it was a joke but they didn’t clip that,” he said.

Watters’ clarification comes after he previously told his co-hosts that the alleged tactic worked in his favour, as it resulted in a “happy ending”. “We’re married!” he said at the time.

Watters and DiGiovine, who worked as a producer on his show, married in December 2019, after the Fox News host finalised his divorce from Noelle Inguagiato the same year.

The Independent has contacted Fox News for comment.