Fox News Media and Tucker Carlson have parted ways, the network announced in a statement on Monday.
‘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’, Fox News said in a statement.
Carlson’s final broadcast of “Tucker Carlson Tonight” aired last Friday. “Fox News Tonight” is set to air as an temporary show led by rotating hosts until his successor is named.
He was the Fox’s most popular host, drawing more than 3 million viewers nightly. He also attracted controversy, including for demeaning comments about immigrants, people of colour and women.
Carlson’s departure comes days after the network reached a $787.5 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems. The voting technology company filed a lawsuit against Fox News in March 2021, accusing it of knowingly airing false statements claiming Dominion helped to rig the 2020 presidential election against former President Donald Trump.
Republican and Democratic lawmakers criticised Carlson for attempting to downplay the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol after he aired selected snippets from 41,000 hours of security footage from the day of the riots.
Carlson claimed surveillance video from the Capitol showed ‘mostly peaceful chaos’ inside the building, and said most who breached the Capitol were ‘orderly and meek’. He equated those in the Capitol to ‘sightseers’.
Republican Senator Thom Tillis of North Carolina, called the claims ‘bulls**t,’ and Republican Sen. Kevin Cramer of North Dakota, said it’s ‘just a lie’ to put the Jan. 6 attack in the same category as a protest.
His departure from Fox was announced just before longtime CNN host Don Lemon announced he’d been fired by the network after 17 years.
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