While the news of Tucker Carlson‘s firing pings around the Internet, a clip is circulating that pretty much indicates the popular TV host had no idea he was going to be fired. In fact, it seemed like business as usual over at the Fox News Network, especially since Carlson just interviewed former President Donald Trump recently.
Regardless, the fallout from the Dominion lawsuit settlement, and the prospect of more litigation in the future, have probably dampened the enthusiasm for Carlson. At the end of his show on Friday, Carlson smugly ate pizza and declared to his audience that he was signing off for the weekend.
He then wished everyone a happy weekend with “the ones you love” and told everyone he’d be back on Monday. Either he was being tongue-in-cheek (unlikely), or he had no idea he was getting axed. Although, there’s also the possibility that he quit after being given some sort of ultimatum. We don’t know yet, but I’m sure we will soon.
Carlson, despite being the channel’s most popular primetime host, has long been an issue for Fox News, particularly the way he handles sensitive topics, like race relations and rights for LGBTQ people. The announcement comes on the heels of Fox agreeing to pay $787.5 million to Dominion, after the voting company alleged the network had made defamatory assertions.
The statement announcing Carlson’s departure was not flowery or congratulatory, and there was definitely nothing to the effect of “we wish him well,” so there’s maybe some bad blood going around.
“FOX News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways. We thank him for his service to the network as a host and prior to that as a contributor. Mr. Carlson’s last program was Friday April 21st. Fox News Tonight will air live at 8 PM/ET starting this evening as an interim show helmed by rotating FOX News personalities until a new host is named.”
Carlson’s show, Tucker Carlson Tonight, has been on the air since 2016. He signed a new deal with the network in 2021 to expand his output into both podcasts and a series of shows called Tucker Carlson Originals. Doesn’t look like that’s going to happen anymore.