Fox News wants to stop Tucker Carlson's new Twitter show

On April 21, 2023, Tucker Carlson presented his show on Fox News, as he has been doing since 2016. Neither he nor his viewers knew that it would be his last show, nor that it would be the start of a war between the cable news channel and its main attraction.

On April 24, hours before Tucker Carlson Tonight was slated to air, Fox News Media announced that they “agreed to part ways” in an official press release.

“We thank him for his service to the network as a host and prior to that as a contributor,” declared the brief statement. Neither Carlson nor Fox News stated the reason behind his exit from the cable channel.

However, sources from The New York Times affirm that the decision was taken by Fox Corporation CEO Lachlan Murdoch and Suzanne Scott, head of Fox News Media.

Pictured: Lachlan and his father Rupert Murdoch during the 2018 US Open.

Carlson had been accused of creating a hostile work environment, with videos and messages leaked shortly after his ousting, The Wall Street Journal reports. These include disparaging remarks on Fox News coworkers and management.

Carlson, who according to The Wall Street Journal only knew about his ousting 10 minutes before going on air, was replaced by the hastily-renamed 'Fox News Tonight'. Brian Kilmeade wished his former colleague good luck in his new life.

A few days later, Pro-Kremlin news outlet Russia Today already extended an invitation to Carlson on Twitter. In the past, Russian government officials have spoken positively about him and his news program.

Instead, Carlson appeared a few days after being let go by Fox News on a video on Twitter. “Something you see is how unbelievably stupid most of the debates you see on television are. They are completely irrelevant”, the former Fox News host stated on the video.

Image: @TuckerCarlson / Twitter

Carlson's Twitter video obtained 80 million views, which impressed more than a few people. A few weeks later, the former Fox News host launched 'Tucker on Twitter', consisting of a 10-minute monologue where he comments on current events.

However, clashes between the TV host and his former employer are not over: Carlson's contract with Fox News states that he's not allowed to appear in any other media outlet until 2025.

According to The New York Times, Fox News threatened legal action against Carlson, whose lawyers released a statement affirming that “Tucker will not be silenced anymore”.

Carlson began as a contributor in the late 2000s and then moved on to ‘Fox & Friends’.

Before that, the host of ‘Tucker Carlson Tonight’ had worked for MSNBC, PBS, and most notably CNN, where his onscreen clash with comedian Jon Stewart led to one of the most memorable and infamous clashes in Carlson’s career.

‘Tucker Carlson Tonight’ started out airing in 2016 and has been as successful with ratings at the same time it was divisive for commentators.

With an average of over three million viewers per episode, as reported by Forbes, ‘Tucker Carlson Tonight’ was the most-watched news program on cable, making Fox News the most-watched news network in the United States.

However, critics argued that Carlson used his show to promote white supremacy, conspiracy theories, and a galvanized, reactionary political discourse.

As The New York Times highlights, Carlson had an opinion about anything from race relations to LGBT rights and was usually a very vocal one.

Carlson’s departure less than a week after Fox News had to pay a settlement of over 787 million US dollars to vote machine company Dominion seems more than a coincidence.

It’s no secret that Carlson has been one of the biggest media allies of former US President Donald Trump, showing him support even after calling the 2020 presidential election into question.

Don Jr., the former president's son, talked with podcast host Charlie Kirk about Carlson's departure. He lauded the former Fox News host as a “once-in-a-generation-type of talent” and considered that his exit “changed everything permanently” in the news channel.

Donald Trump gave an interview to Fox News rival Newsmax where he claimed to be “shocked and surprised” by the news and that Carlson had been “terrific to me”.

According to Reuters, Dominion claimed in its lawsuit that ‘Tucker Carlson Tonight’ was key to spreading misinformation about the voting machines while privately casting doubt about the fraud claims.

More than a few believe that Carlson could enter politics, something he has argued against for many years. But one can’t deny he already has name recognition and friends in the right places.

Maybe Carlson is destined to follow the path of Bill O’Reilly, Glenn Beck, and other Fox News favorites that since leaving the spotlight have slowly faded away from relevancy.