By some definitions, "apparently" does soften your statement, but you are still essentially claiming "Zuckerberg is a great admirer of China and socialism" with

By some definitions, "apparently" does soften your statement, but you are still essentially claiming "Zuckerberg is a great admirer of China and socialism" with a citation that doesn't really support that. Going only by your quote, he could just be saying, "I think it will be valuable to my business for my employees to understand Chinese socialism." By other definitions, "apparently" strengthens your claim to an "obvious" statement of truth, so maybe people are reacting strongly because they read it that way.