While Fox gave no reason for Carlson’s departure, it also didn’t say Carlson was “fired.”
“And now they’re going to have to negotiate an exit,” Kelly posited, expressing doubts that “it’s going to be an amicable parting.”
“That’s how fast it came,” Reilly added. “I know he didn’t want to go out this way. I don’t even know if he knows what the inner decision-making was.”
The Epoch Times reached out to Fox News to find an answer. “We’re not going beyond the release issued on Monday,” Senior Executive Vice President of Corporate Communications for FOX News Media Irena Briganti responded by email.
The Vulgar Language Theory
A recent lawsuit exposed an alleged pattern of vulgar language used by Carlson during his time at Fox News.
The Daily Beast reported that, during his deposition with lawyers, Carlson was asked if “this wasn’t the only time you referred to Sidney Powell as an [expletive].”
“You know I-I-I can’t know and I just want to apologize preemptively,“ Carlson stammered. ”I mean you’re trying to embarrass me, you’re definitely succeeding as I am embarrassed.”
Powell isn’t the only one Carlson allegedly identified by the vulgar moniker.The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that Carlson used the same word to describe an unnamed Fox executive and that he was proud of it. While attorneys for Fox had persuaded the court to redact the revelations of his name-calling through private messages from a legal filing, Carlson said he wanted everyone to know what he had said because his disdain for the mystery executive was, as WSJ described, “deep and enduring.”
The Grossberg Lawsuit Theory
A month before Carlson’s egress, Abby Grossberg, a former booker on “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” filed a complaint against Fox Corporation, Fox News Network, LLC, and Carlson alleging she “endured an extremely hostile work environment under the auspices of senior executives” subjected to “a work environment that subjugates women based on vile sexist stereotypes.”The complaint describes the case as “yet another in the long line of cases chronicling the misogynistic environment that permeates Fox News and fosters a toxic workplace where truth remains a fugitive while female workers are verbally violated on almost a daily basis by a poisonous and entrenched patriarchy.”
The Schumer Theory
Some suggest Carlson’s exit was part of an ongoing effort by liberals to silence conservative voices. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) has repeatedly asked Fox News to shut down Carlson. In a May 17, 2020 letter (pdf) to Fox News management, Schumer asked Fox to “immediately cease the reckless amplification of the so-called ‘Great Replacement theory’” by Carlson. And in remarks made on the Senate floor on July 21, 2022, Schumer said he was “outraged” that Fox News had “taken no action to address” what he called “racist conspiracy theories” being promoted by Carlson.
Just days before the Fox–Carlson split, the network aired an interview in which Elon Musk warned Carlson about the dangers of government censorship. “The degree to which various government agencies had effectively had full access to everything that was going on on Twitter blew my mind,” Musk told Carlson.
The Advertiser Theory
Some speculate that Carlson was dumped in an effort to attract new advertisers and to lure back those who left because they didn’t agree with Carlson’s messaging. The list of 10 advertisers (pdf) that abandoned Carlson’s program includes T-Mobile, Disney, and Papa John’s.The Ukraine Theory
Some suggest that Carlson’s stance on Ukraine became a liability for Fox.
Carlson advocated for a negotiated surrender in Ukraine that would require the country to surrender most of the territory seized by Russia. This made Carlson a star on Russian state TV as well.
Sources told The Washington Post that Rupert Murdoch was not pleased with Carlson labeling President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a “Ukrainian pimp,” or his criticisms against the U.S. government for providing aid against Russian attacks.
According to The Post, this commentary rubbed prominent Republicans the wrong way and damaged Carlson’s relationship with Murdoch.
The Arrogance/Insubordination Theory
Some believe common threads are woven through most of the known theories, creating a pattern of arrogance and insubordination.
During his segment on Fox News’ Sky News Australia on April 25, host Andrew Bolt said, “Tucker was actually sacked … by Lachlan Murdoch, the day-to-day boss of News Corp. And the scoop is that he was sacked essentially for thinking that he was bigger than Fox News.”The WSJ suggested that Carlson’s “famously combative stance toward members of Fox News management and other colleagues caught up with him,” and that his private messages showing “disregard for management and colleagues were a major factor” in the decision to let him go. His anger at Fox for failing to publicly defend him also sparked friction, the paper reported.
An April 28 Rasmussen survey showed 59 percent of likely voters have a favorable impression of Carlson, compared to the 52 percent who feel the same about Fox. Moreover, 32 percent believe Carlson’s removal will make Fox worse. Only 19 percent think his absence will make Fox better.On the evening of April 26, Carlson posted a two-minute video on Twitter. He didn’t mention Fox News. But he did criticize “American media” and “both political parties” for their silence on the “undeniably big topics” that will “define our future.”
“Where can you still find Americans saying true things?” Carlson asked rhetorically. “There aren’t many places left, but there are some, and that’s enough. As long as you can hear the words, there is hope,” he said. “See you soon.”
