Tucker Carlson: The voice of white America's outrage

Agence France-Presse
February 7, 2024

Tucker Carlson (Jason Koerner/AFP)

Influential media provocateur and white outrage generator Tucker Carlson has spent years depicting America as a declining nation under assault by Democrats, Black Lives Matter advocates, 'woke' protesters, and communism.

His hit TV show bombarded viewers with grievance politics and repeatedly depicted white conservatives as being in a fight for their very survival -- that is until Fox News pulled the plug on his nightly broadcasts last April.

But Carlson, long close to former president Donald Trump, launched his own show on social media platform X, the former Twitter.

Now in what could be one of his biggest catches since his online resurrection, Carlson -- an avowed skeptic of American military support for war-torn Ukraine -- announced Tuesday he was in Moscow to interview Russian President Vladimir Putin.

His stunt comes as Republicans in Congress seek to torpedo a bill that provides $60 billion in military aid to help Kyiv fight Russia's invasion.

The interview, if it happens, would only twist the Carlson thorn deeper into the side of Washington's political establishment.

Carlson has repeatedly attacked US media outlets for interviewing Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, saying they were "government propaganda" for pushing the call for more American aid.

- Polarizing -

On his Fox show "Tucker Carson Tonight," he claimed anti-white racism was on the rise, modern liberals hated Christianity, and migrants were invading the United States.

In broadcast after broadcast, Carlson, now 54, would appeal to viewers' outrage and play on their fears, propelling his show toward the summit of cable TV, making him millions of dollars, while providing ample fodder for conspiracy theorists and racists in the process.

Carlson's departure came days after Fox News paid a settlement approaching $800 million to end a defamation case over false allegations that ballot-counting company Dominion Voting Systems had helped steal the 2020 presidential election from Donald Trump.

Internal communications released ahead of the scheduled trial suggested Carlson and senior colleagues doubted claims by Trump aides and the network itself -- but aired them anyway for fear of losing viewers to rivals.


Critics accused Carlson's program of polarizing Americans and contributing to a climate of paranoia that had given rise to politically-motivated violence such as racist mass shootings.

Carlson's show billed itself as "the sworn enemy of lying" and promised to "demand answers" wanted by viewers.

The Dominion case revealed, however, that Carlson lacked the candor he claimed for his dispatches, praising Trump in public while telling colleagues in private he couldn't wait until he could "ignore Trump most nights."

"I hate him passionately," Carlson said of the ex-president in the messages that emerged during the dispute.

Carlson framed the issues he discussed as "they" versus "you" -- "they want to control your thoughts," or "they call you a racist."

He has embraced a far-right notion that Democratic politicians and other elites are trying to replace whites through immigration.


- 'Weird childhood' -

Fox News had backed their star to the hilt despite the criticism he engendered.

The father of four had always appeared confident, telling "The Rubin Report" talk show: "You should only care about the opinions of people who care about you."


It is a lesson learned from what he has called his "weird childhood," marked by the departure of his artist mother when he was only six years old. She moved to France and never saw her children again.

Carlson was raised by his journalist father and followed in his footsteps after trying unsuccessfully to join the CIA.

The road to fame was long -- Carlson had been with Fox News since 2009 after stints at MSNBC and CNN -- but he found himself cast as a leader of conservative thought in the Trump era.

Despite the political influence he wielded, Carlson -- who says he has never owned a television -- lives far from the heart of the US government, in a rural corner of Maine, where he now records his online show and conducts what his website describes as "off grid" interviews.

Tucker Carlson confirms interview with Vladimir Putin

2024/02/06

US conservative political commentator Tucker Carlson speaks at the Turning Point Action USA conference in West Palm Beach, Florida, on July 15, 2023.

 - Giorgio Viera/AFP/Getty Images North America/TNS

Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson confirmed speculation he’s in Russia for an interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“We’re in journalism,” he said in a video posted to social media. “Our duty is to inform people.”

Carlson was first spotted in Moscow over the weekend attending a performance at the Bolshoi Theater. When asked Monday if an interview with Putin was on his agenda, he told Kremlin-adjacent newspaper Izvestia, “We’ll see.” But the 54-year-old right-wing provocateur made clear Tuesday that was his plan and offered an explanation.

“Two years into a war that’s reshaping the entire world, most Americans are not informed,” Carlson said of Russia’s war with Ukraine, which began in February 2022. “They have no real idea what’s happening in this region.”

Carson also thanked Elon Musk “to his great credit” for allowing his unedited Putin interview to be posted on social media platform X, which began hosting Carlson’s content after Fox News dumped the former primetime host in April. The “live to tape” interview will also appear on TuckerCarlson.com at a time not yet announced.

According to Carlson, he’s not interviewing the Russian leader because “we love Vladimir Putin,” but rather because “we love the United States.”

Carlson has been heavily criticized for numerous comments he’s made sympathetic to the way Putin and his politics are perceived in the U.S.

“Has Putin ever called me a racist?” Carlson, whose racially charged rhetoric is well-documented, asked Fox News viewers in 2022. “Has he threatened to get me fired for disagreeing with him? These are fair questions, and the answer to all of them is ‘No.’ Vladimir Putin didn’t do any of that.”

Russian state television has also been known to praise Carlson’s work. In 2020, progressive media outlet Mother Jones reported that the Kremlin told Russian media outlets “it is essential” they promote reporting by Carlson that’s critical of the U.S.

Since leaving television, Carlson has posted interviews with former President Donald Trump, alleged human trafficker Andrew Tate and fraudster Larry Sinclair, who claims to have had “a night of crack cocaine-fueled sex” with former President Barack Obama.

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