UPDATED with additional details: Tucker Carlson and Fox News have agreed to part ways, the network announced Monday. The news came less than an hour before CNN announced it had parted ways with longtime host Don Lemon.
“Mr. Carlson’s last broadcast was Friday, April 21,” according to Fox News.Fox News Tonight will air live beginning tonight at 8:00 PM/ET, as an in-between show hosted by rotating Fox News personalities until a new host is named.
Brian Kilmeade is the host tonight Fox News Tonight.
Carlson’s departure comes less than a week after Fox News agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems $787.5 million to settle the voting software company’s defamation suit. Carlson would be one of the witnesses who testified if the case went to trial.
A Fox News spokesman declined to comment on the reasons for Carlson’s departure, but Rupert Murdoch and Lachlan were involved in the move to let Carlson go, according to a source familiar with the events. Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch and Fox News Media CEO Suzanne Scott made the decision Friday night, and the moderator was reportedly informed of the decision this morning. Carlson’s contract was renewed in 2021 and the Wall Street Journal states that he will be paid for the remainder of his term.
The abruptness of his departure surprised many in the media and on the network. Carlson’s show averaged 3.25 million viewers in March, the largest cable news audience that month, and he signed on to the show on Friday with a promise to return on Monday.
There were also reports that Justin Wells, his show’s senior executive producer, is also out.
Harris Faulkner announced the move on Fox News Channel today, saying, “We have news from our Fox family. Fox News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways. Tucker’s last show was last Friday. … We want would like to thank Tucker Carlson for his service to the network as the host and as a longtime contributor before that.
Carlson was Fox News’ most-watched personality, which made his departure all the more surprising, but he was also its most controversial anchor. Even after the network faced lawsuits over its coverage of the post-2020 election, Carlson continued to suggest that the vote in the presidential race between Donald Trump and Joe Biden was illegal.
He attracted a fervent following for his commentary, night after night, addressing the grievances of Fox News viewers. Some of the biggest outrage on his show came after he aired security footage of the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol and, using select clips, suggested rioters were “tourists.” His characterization was condemned not only by Democrats, but also by Capitol Police and Senate Republicans.
Carlson has been with the station since 2009, first as a commentator and from 2016 as a presenter Tucker Carlson tonight – Taking over 8pm ET slot after Fox News parted ways with Bill O’Reilly. He also hosted a signature show for Fox Nation, the network’s subscription streaming service, as well as a branded documentary series called Tucker Carlson Originals.
But his influence extends beyond Fox News audiences to the Republican Party. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy agreed to allow Carlson and his producers access to the Jan. 6 footage rather than release it widely on the newscasts while Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) took to his show to deliver a snide comment to regret. The siege of the Capitol was an act of terror. Sen. JD Vance (R-OH) wrote Monday that Carlson is “the bravest person in the American media.”
Carlson’s departure quickly sparked intense speculation about the reasons.
Despite the Dominion deal, the network still faces a lawsuit from Abby Grossberg, a former Booking producer who worked on Maria Bartiromo’s show and then on Carlson’s show. She claimed the network forced her to testify in the Dominion case.
Days after she filed the lawsuit, she was fired.
Grossberg also claimed she was molested by Wells and Alexander McCaskill, another producer Tucker Carlson tonight. Her lawsuit detailed a misogynistic culture among Carlson’s show staff, alleging, among other things, that on her first full day she was greeted by large and enlarged photos of “Nancy Pelosi in a plunging swimsuit showing her cleavage.” She also claimed that employees made anti-Semitic and sexist jokes. The network said her lawsuit was “riddled with false allegations”. Carlson, McCaskill and Wells are also defendants in Grossberg’s New York lawsuit.
In a statement after Carlson’s departure, Grossberg said, “This is a step toward accountability for the election lies and baseless conspiracy theories propagated by Fox News, something I have seen firsthand on the network, as well as the abuse and harassment.” for which I had to endure Main Discussion and Senior Production Tucker Carlson tonight.“
The Dominion vs. Fox trial focused primarily on other Fox personalities such as Bartiromo, Jeanine Pirro and Lou Dobbs and the ways they and their guests bolstered allegations that the 2020 election was rigged. But as the trial date approached, a flurry of internal texts and emails were released, embarrassing Carlson and the network. In one, Carlson complained that a news reporter, Jacqui Heinrich, fact-checked and debunked a Trump tweet about voter fraud. Carlson wrote to host Sean Hannity: “Please get her fired.”
“Seriously…what the hell?” Karlson wrote. “I’m really in shock… It has to stop immediately like tonight. This hurts business measurably. The share price fell. No jokes.”
In another post, Carlson wrote that he hates Trump “passionately.” In recent weeks, however, Carlson has devoted a program to a friendly interview with the former president, his first televised sit-down since his impeachment in New York.
The email release also revealed friction between Carlson and the news site, as well as some in management. That includes criticizing longtime head of corporate communications Irena Briganti and sharing with co-hosts Hannity and Laura Ingraham complaints about some of the network’s news personalities.
“We dedicate our lives to building an audience and they let Chris Wallace and Leland screw with Vittert. Too much,” Carlson wrote in a November 2020 exchange. Wallace and Vittert both left the network.
Carlson used an expletive to slam the Fox News decision desk for his early call from Arizona for Joe Biden on election night while chastising management for not retracting the projection. In another post, shown in court last month by Dominion’s lawyers at a restraining order, Carlson referred to Trump lawyer Sidney Powell as a “c–t.”
Some of Carlson’s messages were redacted in the court records, but their contents were known to Fox management.
Carlson’s on-air comments over the years have often turned heads, which has only increased his following on the right. In 2021, the Anti-Defamation League called for his resignation because of his advocacy of the Grand Replacement Theory, a conspiracy theory on the right and among white nationalists that elites plan to replace whites with immigrants. The network originally said it was only addressing a voting rights issue, and Fox Corp. Chief executive Lachlan Murdoch defended him. However, Carlson continued to make the replacement theory claims on his program.
Carlson’s 2021 documentary Patriotic Purification also drew ire for suggesting that the January 6 attack may have been a false flag operation. Two Fox employees, conservative commentators Stephen Hayes and Jonah Goldberg, resigned in part because of the network’s decision to air the project on Fox Nation.
On Sunday, Ray Epps, a Jan. 6 protester, emerged at the Capitol 60 minutes to describe how he went into hiding amid death threats. Carlson launched an unfounded conspiracy theory that Epps was an FBI factory.
Carlson’s Fox News character surprised many who knew him in Washington, where he was based, as he was much more of a creature of the mainstream media establishment, having previously hosted shows on CNN and MSNBC. He could not be reached for comment and it is unclear whether his contract will allow him to join a rival.
Newsmax, a smaller conservative competitor, quickly agreed to side with Carlson at Fox. CEO Christopher Ruddy said in a statement: “Fox News has been in the process of becoming a mainstream media outlet for some time and the removal of Tucker Carlson is an important milestone in that pursuit.”
Another right-wing paper, One America News, said its founder, CEO Robert Herring, “is pleased to invite Carlson to negotiate to become part of the OAN team.”
Newsmax and One America each face lawsuits from Dominion over their post-2020 election coverage, along with lawsuits filed by another voting system company, Smartmatic.
Fox News parted ways last week with Dan Bongino, the radio host and commentator who had a weekend show and content for Fox Nation. “WTF,” Bongino tweeted shortly after the news of Carlson’s departure.
Carlson’s departure drew swift reactions from politicians and celebrities, who had long viewed him as toxic.
“After all Tucker’s lies and slander, it’s time,” Liz Cheney, a former congresswoman from Wyoming and vice chair of the Jan. 6 committee, wrote on Twitter.
Another committee member, Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), told MSNBC that Carlson’s departure was “a blessing for the country and maybe the world.”
Gretchen Carlson, the former Fox News anchor, wrote on Twitter: “Once again it is the bravery of one woman – Abby Grossberg – who truly defeated Tucker Carlson – exposing the female environment in which women have been labeled as c**. ** & much more. If it was b/c of Dominion, others would suffer too.”
O’Reilly tells NewsNationChris Cuomo says current and potential lawsuits, including a potential lawsuit from Epps, played a role in Carlson’s departure.
By the view When Whoopi Goldberg announced his departure, the audience cheered wildly. The hosts waved to a sporting event and Ana Navarro started singing “Na na na na, na na na na, hey hey, goodbye”.
Source: Deadline
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
