In a surprising and abrupt shake-up to the cable news landscape, Tucker Carlson has departed Fox News, effective immediately.
The conservative political commentator has been one of Fox News’ most popular but controversial personalities: his primetime show Tucker Carlson Tonight was one of the highest-rated cable news programs.
The reasons for his departure are not immediately known. Fox News released a brief statement earlier today:
“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.”
According to the announcement, there will be no send-off for Carlson and his departure is effective immediately: his last program aired on Friday. His 8 PM ET time slot will be filled by Fox News Tonight in the interim.
The announcement comes days after Fox News agreed to pay a $787.5 million settlement in Dominion Voting Systems’ defamation lawsuit. The lawsuit alleged that Fox News personalities, including Carlson, made false claims that the company’s voting machines were rigged against former president Donald Trump in the 2020 presidential election. It is not clear if Carlson’s departure is related to that settlement.
Tucker Carlson has been an influential voice in conservative politics in recent years, but his far-right views — on subjects including race, LGBTQ rights and the war in Ukraine — have made him a highly controversial figure. He has been accused of pushing conspiracy theories and white nationalist views into the mainstream, and many advertisers have boycotted his show.
Despite the controversies, Carlson has generated consistently high ratings for Fox News and they have stuck by him over the years — so it isn’t clear yet why Carlson and Fox News have decided to part ways so abruptly.
This is a developing story — stay tuned for more details. In the meantime, please share this breaking news on social media.
