Tucker Carlson is back. In his latest announcement, the former Fox News host said his show is coming back, exclusively broadcasted on Twitter with the help of former staffers. Carlson is opting not to take the $25 million left on his contract with Fox, which would have muzzled him until January 2025 (via NBC News):
Speaking in a nearly three-minute video posted on the platform, Carlson gave few details about the show and offered a familiar criticism of the news media.
Twitter CEO Elon Musk said that Carlson would be subject to the same "rules & rewards" of all users, including subscription revenue and "Community Notes," the platform's content moderation feature.
"I also want to be clear that we have not signed a deal of any kind whatsoever," Musk said.
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A Fox spokesperson did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Carlson’s lawyer also did not respond to a request for comment.
The former host, a ratings God for the network, left amid a cloud of controversy, most grounded in speculation or myth. There were competing narratives about his dismissal from Fox News that ranged from editorial disagreements with the network brass to Rupert Murdoch himself greenlighting moves to clear the way for his exit due to his commentaries over January 6 supposedly.
There was also fear that his texts sent during that riot would be made public in court. The network was prepping to deliver opening arguments in the defamation lawsuit filed by Dominion Voting Systems, which some conservatives have accused of rigging the 2020 election in the Democrats’ favor. Fox News was slapped with a $1.6 billion legal action for which they settled before the trial for $787 million. Carlson and Fox News cut ties shortly afterward.
As for Carlson, the sky remains the limit as he commands an audience that Fox News heads hopefully see as ratings in all their primetime slots have cratered. MSNBC beat Fox in key demos by an average of 35 percent. CNN’s Anderson Cooper and MSNBC’s Chris Hayes ruled the roost at the 8 PM hour, which for years was unattainable. Tucker could make $25 million or more as he goes independent. The notion that he would ever be silenced was laughable from the start. Let the word go forth: Tucker is back.
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