Reports have surfaced that a handful of Fox News talent is considering leaving the network to join former top-rated host Tucker Carlson.
The Daily Caller reported:
A handful of current Fox News talent have contemplated jumping ship and joining former top-rated host Tucker Carlson, according to several media reports. Carlson has been airing his program on Twitter for over a month, despite threats from Fox News.
“Carlson’s Twitter move could have additional reverberations with talent at the network. A handful of Fox anchors have reached out to Carlson directly or had their surrogates contact him to say they are eager to join whatever venture he starts on Twitter when their contracts are up, according to sources,” it was reported.
Carlson currently remains under contract with Fox News at a reported $20 million a year, so he isn’t free to sign on with another network. Reports said his contract doesn’t expire until after the 2024 election, in January 2025.
Variety reported last month that Dominion’s defamation claims against Fox News rested mostly on accusations aired post-2020 election on programs hosted by Sean Hannity, Jeanine Pirro, and Maria Bartiromo, the company wanted to hurt Fox and, as such, chose to press the network into cutting ties with its most popular talent: Carlson.
“That condition was intended to hurt Fox, and Tucker is just collateral damage,” a source familiar with the matter told Variety. “Dominion wanted to punish Fox, and it’s working.”
Variety also reported that Carlson was taken off the air as a condition of Fox’s recent defamation settlement:
On April 26, Carlson spoke by phone with one of Fox Corp.’s eight board members, who told the host that his recent benching was a condition of Fox News’ settlement with Dominion Voting Systems, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the conversation.
The unnamed board member told Carlson that the condition does not appear in any of the settlement’s documents, and instead was a verbal agreement. If Fox didn’t comply, the settlement was off, Carlson was told. Dominion had plenty of leverage given that the $787.5 million deal to settle Dominion’s defamation suit against the network wouldn’t officially close until late May.
Both Fox and Dominion have denied that Carlson’s dismissal was part of the settlement agreement.
Carlson, for his part, has been busy since his departure.
Carlson gave an update on why the network took him off the air in late April during an interview with British comedian and actor Russell Brand during the latter’s podcast.
During one segment of the show, Carlson said he doesn’t know precisely why he was fired but has a good idea about it, adding that he is not angry over the parting of ways.
“Honestly, I don’t know,” Carlson said on Brand’s podcast, “Stay Free,” the former host’s first public interview since being axed by Fox, Newsmax reported. “They didn’t agree with me, of course, I don’t think.”
Carlson has been broadcasting his program on Twitter for over a month, though he remains under contract with Fox News until January 2025. According to Variety, Dominion Voting Systems pressed Fox into cutting ties with its most popular talent in order to punish the network as part of their recently settled defamation suit.
Meanwhile, Carlson has been open about his departure from Fox News during an interview with British comedian and actor Russell Brand on his podcast “Stay Free”.
He noted that he was shocked but not angry when they let him go and expressed some concern about losing drive after turning 54 years old. Despite this, he has spent his time fishing and eating late breakfasts while vacationing in Maine since leaving the network.
In spite of Carlson’s absence from cable news ratings have rebounded for Fox News since April due to an interview with former President Donald Trump and Jesse Watters taking over the 8 p.m spot once held by Tucker Carlson.
Last week saw MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show beat Fox’s Hannity by 100,000 viewers, one of only four MSNBC hours to break into the top 40 most-viewed cable shows last week according to Forbes.
Overall, it appears that despite reports of current talent considering joining Tucker Carlson outside of Fox News, viewership for the channel remains strong without him at its helm.
