Tucker Carlson This and That…
[guest post by Dana]
Now that he’s unemployed, Moscow is wooing Tucker Carlson:
The departure from his job as Fox News host Tucker Carlson on April 24 sent ripples all the way to Moscow. The decision seemed so important to the Kremlin that Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov publicly questioned it and RT, Russia’s most prominent propaganda network, immediately offered Carlson a slot.
The RT offer, unavailable in the many countries where it is banned, was spelled out to Newsweek in a statement. “We already had the pleasure of working with the greats like [the imprisoned] Julian Assange and the late Larry King and had extended an invitation to President Trump in 2020, and we continue to welcome outspoken, diverse personalities on our network,” it said.
Not to be outdone, the Russian television host Vladimir Solovyov used his Telegram channel to make another offer. “Tucker, come and join us. You don’t have to be afraid of taking the p*** out of Biden here,” he said.
Official Russia’s affection for Carlson seems genuine and profound. Even before Russia’s all-out invasion of Ukraine 14 months ago, Carlson’s clips were a mainstay on Russia’s tightly controlled state-funded television. The American television host is a household name in Moscow, along with domestic TV figures like Solovyov, Margarita Simonyan, Dmitry Kiselyov, and other spokespeople for the war. Carlson has never outright endorsed the full-scale invasion, but has repeatedly questioned US support and asked, “Why is it disloyal to side with Russia but loyal to side with Ukraine?”
With friends like these, am I right?!
It has now come to light that Carlson’s abrupt firing likely involved some less-than-professional language used to describe a Fox executive and other vulgarities, thus exposing the company to embarrassment:
Carlson described a senior Fox News executive as a C-word in a text message obtained by lawyers as part of a defamation lawsuit between the network and Dominion Voting Systems…
In a case settled last week for $787.5m, Fox lawyers reportedly convinced the Delaware judge to redact the message from public filings. Carlson, however, was still reportedly furious the network was not doing enough to protect him.
Other messages in which he called the Donald Trump adviser and attorney Sidney Powell attorney a C-word and a “bitch” were made public as part of the lawsuit.
The primetime host’s internal messages were among the most embarrassing for Fox, as he said he “passionately hated” Trump, called for a colleague to be fired for accurately fact-checking claims about voting machines, and bluntly criticized Powell.
Carlson faces a separate lawsuit from Abby Grossberg, a former senior booking producer who claims that Carlson created a sexist and hostile working environment, that she was denied promotion opportunities, and that she was then set up to be the scapegoat in Dominion Voting Systems’ suit against Fox News.
Grossberg’s lawyer Parisis Filippatos filed a motion to intervene in Dominion’s lawsuit against Fox in Delaware to assert her rights to the scope or location of her potential testimony, or alternatively unseal any transcripts concerning her or her testimony. Her lawyers state in the filing that Fox cannot rely on her “coerced, inaccurate, deposition testimony” while simultaneously asking the court to keep references to her testimony sealed….In the interview, Grossberg said network executives were well aware that she was booking guests like Giuliani and lawyer Sidney Powell for the “Sunday Morning Futures With Maria Bartiromo” show, and that they were likely to spread unfounded conspiracy theories about Dominion’s voting machines.
While Carlson mulls over Kremlin job offers and lawyers work on his behalf, will Fox News continue to be the organ of the Republican Party? Will viewers stick with the network after this latest slap in their collective face? Carlson, like Trump, knew precisely what viewers wanted, and was more than willing to dish up their favorite MAGA gruel. He was rewarded with eye-popping ratings and a loyal following that continued to grow over the years. But Carlson isn’t the first major on-air “talent” to be fired by Fox (see: Glenn Beck, Bill O’Reilly (Carlson’s show was a replacement). Despite Tucker Carlson’s baffling popularity, the smirking little demi-god forgot that, at the end of the day, he was just an employee who answered to those more powerful than a cable pundit. And like the previously fired pundits, it probably didn’t ever occur to Carlson that he really was expendable. The man created a hostile work environment, he posed a tremendous liability to the company with the revelation of the text messages and was revealed to be little more than a grifter who peddled lies to his viewers. When you consider everything, the real question isn’t Why would they fire him?, it’s My God, why *wouldn’t* they fire him? Ultimately, Tucker Carlson failed to realize that a company’s bottom line matters more than anyone’s ego. Even an organization as powerful as Fox Corporation and as reliant upon its mega-star as Fox News was, has limitations. Only so many hits can be taken. I think that his insatiable ego and financial success convinced him that he was invincible, untouchable, and impervious to the standard trappings of employment. Carlson has always been a smart-ass frat boy with a delusional view of his importance and worth. It might be a jolt to Carlson, but it has been aptly said about Fox News: “They’ve built a machine over there that seems to function even when the pistons are replaced.”
Meanwhile, enjoy this little video that Carlson released last night. It contains his usual talking points and a reminder that he is the one who delivers truth. IOW, typical gruel served to his viewers:
Good evening pic.twitter.com/SPrsYKWKCE
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) April 27, 2023
P.S. Despite Tucker Carlson having been fired, rest assured, the First Amendment is alive and well.
Heh.
–Dana
Hello.
Dana (560c99) — 4/27/2023 @ 12:52 pmTucker Carlson it is said is not so keen on defending Taiwan either.
he released a video last night, on Twitter and by itself, whose audio has been replayed and replayed on conservative talk radio.
It says nothing about his firing (he probably reached a settlement quickly with Fox accompanied by a Non-disclosure-agreement. He said that most of the arguments on cable news are about unimportant things that nobody will remember, instead of some things he mentioned.
Until a few weeks ago I could not have told you the difference between Tucker Carlson and Jake Tapper. I didn’t watch it. But he got quoited in stories – more and more as time went on.
He was basically a dishonest demagogue – that comes through – who incorporated some true or close to true things in his monologues.
Tucker Carlson tried to make it seem like he was very close to Rupert Murdoch’s son, which was not true.
He is supposed to have insulted some Fox executives in the material Dominion had (Fox lawyers had to but executives did not find out till the day before the trial was originally supposed to start – that is on Sunday April 16, 2023)
There is also the lawsuit by a woman who put up with a lot until she was given a bad rating. She says she has 90 different recordings.
There was a focus on women’s attractiveness, with blown up pictures of Nancy Pelosi in bathing suit plastered all over and there were prejudiced type jokes circulating. They say nobody at Fox liked Tucker Carlson except (some of?) his staff.
Sammy Finkelman (02a146) — 4/27/2023 @ 1:19 pmAbby Grossberg says her testimony was somewhat coached. (apparently to make it seem like she was not encouraged to book election liars)
By the way, Justin Wells, the Senior Executive Producer of Tucker Carlson Tonight & VP of Tucker Carlson Digital Products at Fox News was fired along with him.
Sammy Finkelman (1d215a) — 4/27/2023 @ 1:23 pmMoscow is upset that its number one running dog is no longer stooging for putin.
asset (61cd14) — 4/27/2023 @ 1:48 pmLeft behind up on the shelf of public discourse w/o a platform, this guy will be as stale as a loaf of bread— and Liz Cheney– in a month or two.
What’s more amusing are the very people who complained MOST about this barking dog, won’t stop feeding him and thus keep the barking going by posting his “videos,” and spotlighting him w/attention and giving access to their outlets or platforms.
He’s been cancelled. He’s corporately toxic now; too radioactive to drop anchor in a new port; his audience will inevitable fragment down to a small core as the rest migrate to fresher faces for feeding and stroking… and he’ll follow in the wake of so many others thrown overboard… like O’Reilly, Beck… and “Lonesome Rhodes”…
“Suppose I tell you exactly what’s gonna happen to you. You’re gonna be back in television. Only it won’t be quite the same as it was before. There’ll be a reasonable cooling-off period and then somebody will say: “Why don’t we try him again in a inexpensive format. People’s memories aren’t too long.” And you know, in a way, he’ll be right. Some of the people will forget, and some of them won’t. Oh, you’ll have a show. Maybe not the best hour or, you know, top 10. Maybe not even in the top 35. But you’ll have a show. It just won’t be quite the same as it was before. Then a couple of new fellas will come along. And pretty soon, a lot of your fans will be flocking around them. And then one day, somebody’ll ask: “Whatever happened to, a, whatshisname? You know, the one who was so big. The number-one fella a couple of years ago. He was famous. How can we forget a name like that? Oh by the way, have you seen, a, Barry Mills? I think he’s the greatest thing since Will Rogers.” – Mel Miller [Walter Matthau] ‘A Face In The Crowd’ 1957
DCSCA (6aa83c) — 4/27/2023 @ 3:03 pmTrump was supposed to be over after J6, DC, after his coup attempt. I wouldn’t write off Tucker just yet.
Paul Montagu (8f0dc7) — 4/27/2023 @ 4:24 pmAnd speaking of Trump’s election fraud hoax, turns out ordered not one, but two investigations into alleged fraud, and the second of which also came up with rags.
@6. Tucka wasn’t POTUS, Paul. He was a talk show host; an opinionator— ENTERTAINER. Just like O’Reilly and Beck…. all w/followings and all easily replaceable– O’Reilly the hottest ticket at Fox until he was jettisoned and was replaced w/… Tucka.
On deck: O’Reilly protege, Jesse Watters. Fodder for the same audience– at a lesser $ contract.
DCSCA (fd0488) — 4/27/2023 @ 4:30 pmTucka wasn’t POTUS, Paul. He was a talk show host; an opinionator— ENTERTAINER.
DCSCA (fd0488) — 4/27/2023 @ 4:30 pm
Who was it here that harped ad nauseam about how Trump was an entertainer?
norcal (15fce4) — 4/27/2023 @ 5:15 pm@8. norcal, Trump entertained w/a profitable entertainment program on the NBC platform, did not inflame corporate nor endanger the revenue stream and was invited into American living rooms for FOURTEEN YEARS. Tucka, not so much; he has flamed out at CNN (2000–2005), PBS (2004–2005), MSNBC (2005–2008) and now, Fox News (2009–2023). Animal Planet and the Cartoon Network await.
The late watermelon smasher, Gallegher, was an entertainer, as well. So was Ronald Reagan. Maybe you can assimilate the difference.
DCSCA (3512e6) — 4/27/2023 @ 5:41 pmI expect OANN to bid for his services. It couldn’t hurt them.
Kevin M (f94f4f) — 4/27/2023 @ 5:46 pmRemember how the world ended when Rush Limbaugh was silenced by death? Yes, that handful of survivors clung aimlessly to the barren, spinning, asteroidic rubble as Luna wept with them; so lonely missing the companionship of their lost terra firma. =sarc=
DCSCA (3512e6) — 4/27/2023 @ 5:54 pm@10. Short term, perhaps… a periodic contributor of some sort- once his voice grows dim on it’s own… like a shouting soul tossed overboard at sea grows quieter as the major platform of the ol’corporate ship steams onward… but not under contract w/any platform until– or if, the corporate toxicity has subsided. He needs a major platform to shout from. W/o it and isolated as a lone internet ranter, he projects poorly. The suits will carefully run the numbers before committing to anything in the near term.
DCSCA (3512e6) — 4/27/2023 @ 6:03 pmEach according to his ability ….
The CIA turned Tucker down (yes, really) when he applied
nk (b3939b) — 4/27/2023 @ 7:12 pmto be a molefor a job there, but he was at the end a good propagandist under his journalistic cover. And who knows what tidbits he picked up from all the government insiders he hobnobbed with and and sent home to Mother Russia in the meanwhile.I doubt that Newsmax or OANN could afford to pay him what he’d demand. Forbes reported he get between $15-$20 million per year. Besides, their ratings have shot up since his termination from Fox. They might not need him if things continue like this.
Dana (560c99) — 4/27/2023 @ 7:33 pm@14. Right. Exactly. That tells you his ‘audience’ is already beginning to fragment and searching for a new face and voice to follow on an established platform. Alone, on his own, his interweb echo will wither and die away. He’ll end up sounding like an Alex Jones by Labor Day w/o an anchoring platform. “That’s ‘showbiz’.”
DCSCA (3512e6) — 4/27/2023 @ 7:43 pmI doubt that Newsmax or OANN could afford to pay him what he’d demand
Maybe he can get a radio gig like Rush or Stern. They could simulcast a NKVD translation to Russia.
Kevin M (f94f4f) — 4/27/2023 @ 8:20 pmExtradite him to Ukraine.
Kevin M (f94f4f) — 4/27/2023 @ 8:22 pmI doubt that Newsmax or OANN could afford to pay him what he’d demand. Forbes reported he get between $15-$20 million per year.
Brace yourselves, but the CEO of OANN’s parent company wants people to believe that he has offered Tucker Carlson $25 million to come to his network. The CEO is almost certainly a lying blowhard, but even if it’s only $15 million or $10 million, that might be pretty attractive to Carlson.
I was listening to the Commentary podcast yesterday and John Podhoretz, who hired Carlson to the Weekly Standard 25+ years ago, was marveling that Tucker has reinvented himself from Elitist Corporate Republican (remember the bowtie?) to Libertarian (he was a Cato fellow) to neo-Buchananite (anti-Iraq War) to Nationalist Conservative (current incarnation). Don’t be surprised if he reinvents himself again soon.
JVW (eea355) — 4/27/2023 @ 8:36 pm@18. LOL The story is certainly savvy attention-getting PR for OANN even if it’s “might” BS… ‘folks’ have heard and read more about OANN this week than in the past year… 😉
DCSCA (3512e6) — 4/27/2023 @ 8:50 pmDon’t be surprised if he reinvents himself again soon.
As I said, he could go to MSNBC and host the Mao Tse Tung Hour, and it would not offend his principles.
Kevin M (f94f4f) — 4/27/2023 @ 11:48 pmThose are my principles, and if you don’t like them… well, I have others.
Groucho Marx
Appalled (e2e408) — 4/28/2023 @ 8:00 am