April 24, 2023

Tucker Carlson and Fox News Are Breaking Up

The star host, whose last show was Friday, won’t even get an on-air farewell.

Richard Drew/AP

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Fox News on Monday announced that Tucker Carlson, by many measures America’s most-watched cable news star, is leaving. A reason was not immediately provided.

“Mr. Carlson’s last program was Friday April 21st,” a statement read. “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.”

The shock announcement ends Carlson’s meteoric rise at Fox News, where his brand of xenophobia, white grievance, and hate transformed Carlson into a singular force at the conservative news network—and its top presenter. Tucker Carlson Tonight has also been labeled the most racist show in the history of cable news.

The bombshell comes days after Dominion Voting Systems reached an eleventh-hour settlement agreement with Fox News, averting what was all but certain to be a bruising trial featuring testimony from Fox News anchors and top executives. In the months leading up to the settlement, several filings revealed that Fox News’ on-air talent had privately questioned Donald Trump’s election conspiracy theories. One included damaging text messages from Carlson in which he admitted to hating the former president “passionately.” 

This is a breaking news post. We’ll update as more becomes available.

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We just keep seeing it happen: Newsrooms owned by billionaires and corporations are spinning their own narratives, overwriting the truth, following only stories that keep them in the pocket of those with even more power.

Not here. We’re not owned by anyone. We’re not part of any cult that demands our allegiance to a bottom line. We’ve spoken up and spoken out while other newsrooms changed their stories—or cut them altogether—to keep the C suite happy.

Our mission is to find the truth and amplify it. That’s why we’re independent, nonprofit, and, crucially, funded by readers. The investigations on our website will always be free to read, watch, and listen to, but our newsroom is powered by readers who pitch in what they can so we can keep asking the hard questions.

Can you chip in today?

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