Tucker Carlson brings a ‘remake’ of the show to Twitter after Fox News ouster

Tucker Carlson is bringing a “new version” of his influential political commentary show to Twitter, the right-wing pundit announced in a video Tuesday, following the host’s high-profile split with Fox News last month.

In a video posted to his Twitter page, Carlson called the social network the “last” major media distribution channel to allow free speech, while appearing to allude to his recent departure from Fox.

“The best thing you can hope for in the news business right now is the freedom to tell the fullest truth that you can,” he said in his announcement video. “There are always limits. And you know that if you hit those limits often enough, you’ll get fired for it. It’s not an assumption, it’s guaranteed.”

The former Fox News host used the ad to lash out at other news outlets, calling them purveyors of “thinly disguised propaganda.”

“The news you are consuming is a lie, a lie of the most stealthy and insidious kind,” he said. aggregate.

The move means Carlson will give up at least $25 million from Fox Corp in connection with a non-compete clause in his previous contract. Disc News reports.

the independent has contacted Fox News and Twitter for comment.

Elon Musk took to Twitter Tuesday afternoon to deny that his social media platform had any official deal with Carlson.

“On this platform, unlike the one-way street of broadcasting, people can interact, criticize and refute everything that is said. And of course anything tricky will get @CommunityNotes”, he tweeted.

“I also want to make it clear that we have not signed any type of agreement. Tucker is subject to the same rules and rewards as all content creators.”

He added: “I hope that many others, particularly on the left, also choose to be content creators on this platform.”

The conservative network has not explained in detail why it parted ways with Carlson, the nation’s most-watched cable news figure, last month.

The announcement, however, came as Carlson was featured prominently in several high-profile scandals for the network, including a massive defamation lawsuit that revealed private messages from top Fox talent such as Carlson criticizing Donald Trump and his election conspiracies, only to later broadcast both on the air. .

Evidence uncovered in the lawsuit also allegedly showed Carlson making highly racist statements, reportedly unnerving Fox News executives on the eve of a potential trial.

The Dominion Voting Systems lawsuit was later settled for a staggering $787.5 million, one of the largest media libel settlements in US history.

Separately, a former Fox News producer on Carlson’s show is suing the network, accusing the host and his senior staff of making his life a “living hell” through a toxic work environment and trying to force his testimony in the Dominion lawsuit.

The same day he announced his new show, Carlson also accused his former employer of fraud and breach of contract.

The commentator reportedly sent an aggressive letter to Fox News’ top leadership on Tuesday accusing the outlet of violating its contract by allegedly leaking his private communications as part of an “adverse employment action against him” and reaching a settlement. with Dominion in a way that hurt Carlson. reputation and future business prospects, Axiosreports.

Fox News told the outlet that Mr. Carlson’s allegations about the deal were “categorically false.”

The move by Carlson, whose show on Fox was called “the most racist show in the history of cable news” by The New York Times for its embrace of white nationalist ideology, seems to confirm the fears of Twitter critics, who warned that Elon Musk’s takeover of the social network would unleash right-wing actors and conspiracy theorists.