Fox News announced yesterday that last Friday was the last for its top news personality. Don Irvine of Accuracy in Media suspects Dominion Voting Systems' defamation lawsuit settlement was the kicker.
"I think they wind up giving in to the liberal media pressure after the Dominion lawsuit," he submits. "Heads will roll, or at least make a sacrificial lamb, and you get Tucker."
There was no immediate explanation from Fox about why Carlson was leaving, but insiders have since revealed that Lachlan Murdoch, the chief executive of Fox Corporation, and Suzanne Scott, chief executive of Fox News Media, decided on Friday night to fire him just after Fox News reached a historic settlement with Dominion Voting Systems for over $787 million and the admission that it had made reporting errors – including some by Carlson.
Talk host and reporter Richard Randall agrees that Dominion likely had something to do with it.
"It may have been part of the settlement to say, 'Well, we'll settle for this. You don't have to go to trial; you don't have to put your people on the stand to testify, but we'd like you to do away with this person, this person, this person,'" Randall says.
Meanwhile, some outlets are reporting that Carlson's exit was in part over a discrimination lawsuit filed by his producer. Randall also suspects Tucker was taking on topics that made Fox News uncomfortable – topics like "Ray Epps or January 6th or Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. or the JFK assassination or UFOs."
As for what Carlson will do next, Irvine believes he will land on his feet, most likely with his own podcast and new editorial freedom.
"This is now Tucker unleashed," he says.
In the minutes following the announcement, Fox Corp's stock dropped more than 5% – a decline worth more than $1 billion.
Carlson has not yet commented on the parting.
