Fired Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson emerged on Twitter Wednesday for the first time since he was ousted from Rupert Murdoch’s empire, with a two-minute broadside against US media and politics.
(Bloomberg) — Fired Fox News anchor Tucker Carlson emerged on Twitter Wednesday for the first time since he was ousted from Rupert Murdoch’s empire, with a two-minute broadside against US media and politics.
Alluding to his sudden termination at Fox News as taking “a little time off,” the former presenter castigated American media for not discussing important issues, saying one thing he had noticed in recent days was “how unbelievably stupid most of the debates you see on television are. They are completely irrelevant. They mean nothing.”
Speculation is rising on the controversial anchor’s next move. Tirades against everything from climate change to M&M’s candies made him the most watched prime-time presenter on cable TV, but created an increasingly large headache for his former network. He regularly sparked outrage with his show segments, including one earlier this year in which he claimed the Jan. 6 insurrection in Washington DC, had been a peaceful protest.
The last straw came when lawyers for Dominion Voting Systems Inc., which recently settled a defamation suit against Fox Corp. for a record $787.5 million, uncovered evidence that Carlson had insulted management, colleagues and guests. A still unresolved suit by former Fox producer Abby Grossberg also accuses the popular host of misogyny and contributing to a hostile workplace.
In his Twitter diatribe, which steered away from any mention of Fox News or his ousting, Carlson said debate on big topics such as war, corporate power and natural resources was “not permitted in American media” thanks to political parties and their donors.
“Where can you still find Americans saying true things? There aren’t many places left but there are some, and that’s enough,” he said, without specifying where those may be.
Conservative channels Newsmax and One America News Network are among names that have publicly indicated they are wooing him.
–With assistance from Sohee Kim.
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