Originally posted April 25, 2023 11:45 am PDT
Fox News announced on Monday that it had terminated Tucker Carlson, one of its highest-rated hosts, who had become an influential voice for conservatives over the past few years.
Carlson, 53, had attracted a large audience with his incendiary monologues on topics such as the illegal immigration crisis in America, Critical Race Theory, vaccines, and nationalism.
The decision to let Carlson go was made by Lachlan Murdoch, Fox Corporation’s CEO, and Suzanne Scott, Fox News Media’s CEO, on Friday night, according to an individual familiar with the matter who spoke with The New York Times (NYT).
Fox News is owned by Fox Corp.
Carlson was informed of the decision by Scott on Monday morning, another source disclosed.
The “Tucker Carlson Tonight” show had become essential viewing for conservatives during Donald Trump’s presidency.
The former president’s rise to power was fueled by the same populist and cultural war grievances that made Carlson a prominent figure.
His swift ascent at the network began in early 2017 after Trump’s inauguration, and he quickly became one of Fox’s biggest stars.
Few other conservative commentators had the same influence on Trump and his supporters as Carlson.
However, his power outside the network couldn’t protect him from mounting issues related to his conduct both on and off the air, which had reportedly been troubling both Lachlan and his father, Rupert Murdoch, Fox Corporation’s chairman and co-founder, NYT notes.
Carlson also faced criticism from both the right and left for showing never-before-seen footage from the January 6, 2021 unrest at the U.S. Capitol that proved the rioters were “mostly peaceful” onlookers, many of whom wandered into the Capitol, directed by the police.
This broadcast elicited criticism from Senator Mitch McConnell, a friend of Rupert Murdoch, who said Carlson had drawn “offensive and misleading conclusions.”
One point of contention with Lachlan Murdoch was Carlson’s 2021 documentary “Patriot Purge,” which promoted the theory that the Capitol attack was a false flag operation meant to discredit Trump and his political movement.
Lachlan was apparently taken aback by the program.
Despite appearing close with the Murdoch family, particularly Lachlan, Carlson admitted in his sworn deposition as part of the Dominion lawsuit that he rarely communicated with the Fox CEO.
In response to questions about their relationship, Carlson stated, “It’s not on a weekly basis or even a monthly basis.”
