Tucker Carlson has left Fox News abruptly. On Monday, the network announced that Carlson will no longer host his nightly program, effective immediately. It was described as a mutual decision, but the network did not give any particular reason for this sudden change.
“Mr. Carlson’s last program was Friday, April 21st,” read a statement from Fox News published by Deadline. “Fox News Tonight will air live at 8 p.m. ET starting this evening as an interim show helmed by rotating Fox News personalities until a new host is named.” Carlson has been hosting Tucker Carlson Tonight five days a week on Fox News since 2016, and has occupied the 8 p.m. hour since 2017. Along the way he has become one of the network’s most controversial pundits and has even been accused of spreading conspiracy theories and inciting violence among his viewers.
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Some pundits are already speculating that that’s a reason Carlson and Fox News are “parting ways.” Fox just settled a huge lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems over the network’s coverage of the 2020 election, which included unsubstantiated conspiracy theories without the proper disclaimers. Carlson has previously been implicated in other disinformation incidents and blamed for their outcomes, such as the insurrection at the capitol building on Jan. 6, 2021.
Still, Tucker Carlson Tonight has consistently been a highly-rated show for Fox News and the network has stuck with him through controversies before. As abrupt as his exit is, it was not portrayed as a bitter breakup. The network’s statement said: “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.”
It’s unclear what comes next for Carlson and it’s hard to make a reliable guess. It may be even further from straightforward journalism than Tucker Carlson Tonight – in defending Fox News in 2020, lawyers described Carlson’s show as “exaggeration” and “non-literal commentary,” suggesting he was more of an editorial essayist than a reporter. If Carlson continues to appear in the spotlight he may lean into that role even more.
Then again, Carlson may pivot to different work entirely. Carlson did not study journalism in college but history, and from the beginning of his career, he has focused on opinion pieces about reporting. The anchor himself has not yet commented publicly on Monday’s announcement.
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