If you care at all about conservative media, you’ve undoubtedly heard by now that Tucker Carlson is no longer with Fox News.
The stunning announcement, which was made Monday, sees the 53-year-old firebrand leaving the network after 14 years.
Carlson started at Fox News as a contributor in 2009, before blossoming into the primetime powerhouse he currently is best known as.
His eponymous show, “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” first aired in 2016 to a smashing ratings success, and continued to be one of Fox News’ heaviest hitters on network cable (his show’s late-night re-runs were beating first-run content from CNN, for example.)
So.
From all indications, Carlson appeared to be a beloved co-worker, was enjoying smashing ratings success, and hadn’t insulted any women over the age of 50 recently. In other words: He’s the literal antithesis of the also recently fired Don Lemon.
Both Lemon and Carlson found themselves in the unemployment line on Monday, but Lemon’s firing from CNN makes some semblance of sense.
By all indications, Lemon was a malcontent and bully on his show, which would’ve justified his firing even if “CNN This Morning” was a smashing success (it isn’t.)
But as for Carlson? Something about that firing still doesn’t add up.
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Naturally, fans and critics alike are pondering aloud what had happened to Carlson.
New details from Mediaite, an outlet that focuses on the news about the news, suggested that Carlson’s departure from Fox News may not have been so amicable.
In a statement sent to The Western Journal, Fox News noted that all sides “have agreed to part ways” before thanking him for “his service to the network.”
According to Mediaite, that “agreement” to part ways may not have been the most accurate way to describe the situation.
The outlet, citing multiple unnamed sources, claimed that Carlson’s expulsion was “not voluntary,” and that the conservative firebrand had been forced out by the powers above him.
“He was totally surprised,” one source told Mediaite. “He had no idea.”
That same source told the outlet: “It was a firing.”
An unexpected firing would make sense, given Carlson ended what ultimately turned out to be the final episode of “Tucker Carlson Tonight” on Friday by telling his viewers, “We’ll be back on Monday.”
Mediaite went further in its report, painting a chaotic scene at Fox News. The report claims that the Fox newsroom is “in a state of shock” and that the news of Carlson’s firing “hit like a bomb.”
Despite the recent report about this being a firing and not a mutual separation, there are still many lingering questions such as the ever-important question of, “Why?”
For now, the primary line of thinking is that Carlson’s abrupt removal was connected to the near-$800 million settlement Fox News made with Dominion Voting Systems. Carlson has been inextricably linked to that controversy.
But while Fox News decides how to eventually explain Carlson’s firing, it’s currently grappling with the immediate headaches of Carlson’s departure.
Given Carlson’s general popularity, it’s little surprise that the two fiercest responses to his firing have come from furious fans — and investors.
