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☆ Tucker Carlson breaks his silence but does not address his departure from Fox News
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

New York CNN —Tucker Carlson broke his silence on Wednesday evening, posting a short video online after his abrupt firing from Fox News earlier in the week, but did not directly address his departure from the network nor his future. “Trust me as someone who has participated.”Carlson concluded the video with an opaque message, “Where can you still find Americans saying true things? Without Carlson, Fox News has seen its ratings dip during the hour. Fox News announced earlier in the week that the network and Carlson had severed ties. The decision to part ways with Carlson was made Friday evening by Fox Corporation chief executive Lachlan Murdoch and Fox News chief executive Suzanne Scott, a person familiar with the matter said.

☆ Fox News has a secret file of damaging info on Tucker Carlson in case he starts trashing the network: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Fox News PR keeps an "oppo file" on Tucker Carlson in case he lashes out, Rolling Stone reported. One insider told the outlet that such files are kept on all the network's talent. Fox News' PR chief has a dossier of damaging information on Tucker Carlson to be used in the event that he comes out swinging against the network, Rolling Stone reported. Some grievances against Carlson and his team have recently emerged, with former "Tucker Carlson Tonight" producer Abby Grossberg filing a lawsuit last month which alleged a "sexist" work environment. In response to the lawsuit, Fox told Insider the allegations have "no merit" and that it would "vigorously defend" the network.

☆ CNN's Oliver Darcy says he requested $1,000 on Venmo from Tucker Carlson, who he says made a bet that Darcy would lose his job
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

CNN journalist Oliver Darcy tweeted that Carlson had allegedly lost a $1,000 bet between them. Carlson called Darcy to say the CNN reporter would lose his job at the cable network, Darcy said. Oliver Darcy claimed on Tuesday that Tucker Carlson called him last year, betting $1,000 that the CNN reporter would meet a similar fate to the one he had met on Monday. "He vowed to Venmo me $1,000 if I still was employed by CNN a year later. Following over a decade at Fox News, Carlson was let go by the network 10 minutes before it released a statement.

☆ Tucker Carlson's history of alleged workplace sexism stretches back to 2015, long before Abby Grossberg
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Katherine Long | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Possible rationales include Murdoch's contempt for Carlson's religiosity and Carlson's insistence on hewing to conspiracy theories about the January 6, 2021 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Internal correspondence unearthed in a defamation lawsuit against Fox News showed Carlson used sexist expletives to refer to a female Fox executive and a guest. The company last week agreed to pay $787.5 million to settle a defamation lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems. Carlson was one of many Fox News hosts who promoted false election conspiracies, the subject of the defamation suit, on their shows. Fox News is still facing a similar defamation suit from another voting machine manufacturer.

CNN —Special Counsel Jack Smith has expressed interest in audio tapes recorded by former Fox News producer Abby Grossberg while she worked at the right-wing network, her lawyer said. Grossberg attorney Gerry Filippatos told CNN on Wednesday that he has given a spreadsheet to the special counsel’s team, detailing the nearly 90 audiotapes in Grossberg’s possession. “We’re in the process of negotiating a targeted subpoena for Abby’s electronic data, so they can have what they want,” Filippatos said. Federal investigators initially reached out several weeks ago, after some of the tapes were aired by news outlets, Filippatos said. Fox vehemently denies these allegations and has said her lawsuits are “riddled with false allegations against Fox and our employees.”A spokesman for the special counsel’s office declined to comment.

☆ Former Fox producer who sued Tucker Carlson alleging a 'sexist' work environment just 1 month before he was ousted has 'mixed feelings' about his departure
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-26 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A former Fox producer suing Tucker Carlson said his Monday ouster left her with "mixed feelings." Abby Grossberg spoke to MSNBC this week about her ongoing lawsuits against Carlson and Fox. A former Fox News producer who is suing Tucker Carlson and other company executives for running a "sexist" work environment said Carlson's shocking ouster on Monday felt like the deliverance of "partial" justice. So, when she learned that Carlson had been ousted on Monday morning, Grossberg said she was left with "mixed emotions." Grossberg has also alleged that Fox News attorneys coerced her into making false statements in a deposition for the since-settled Dominion lawsuit.

☆ AOC celebrates as Tucker Carlson is ousted from Fox News: 'Couldn't have happened to a better guy'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Natalie Musumeci | Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez celebrated Tucker Carlson's bombshell ousting at Fox News. "Couldn't have happened to a better guy," Ocasio-Cortez said in a video posted to her Instagram. Still, Ocasio-Cortez said she is wary that Carlson will bounce back. Fox News announced it had parted ways with Carlson, the network's top host, on Monday. Several prominent right-wing personalities, such as Glenn Beck and Matt Walsh, voiced their displeasure and shock about Carlson's firing on Twitter on Monday.

☆ Fox News’ sudden firing of Tucker Carlson may have come down to one simple calculation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Oliver Darcy | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

In the hours following Carlson’s abrupt dismissal from the right-wing channel, a number of explanations have emerged — all with plausibility. One veteran television news executive told me that they believed the decision came down to a straightforward calculation by the Murdochs: Risk versus reward. It is pretty much enshrined as a law of physics in the universe of right-wing media that whoever the Murdochs put in prime time will rate. All that said, Carlson will test the hypothesis that Fox News as a brand trumps any single personality. Carlson is a force unlike any other in right-wing media and politics.

☆ Bill O'Reilly says the GOP is in trouble now that Tucker Carlson is out at Fox — and bringing his far-right viewers with him
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Cheryl Teh | Lauren Steussy | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Bill O'Reilly predicts Tucker Carlson's ouster at Fox News will cause trouble for the GOP. "Because the Republican Party, most of it, paid attention to Tucker Carlson," O'Reilly said. "Because the Republican Party, most of it, paid attention to Tucker Carlson," O'Reilly said on Monday on an episode of his show, "No Spin News." Carlson's fiefdom was focused on the Americans on the "committed right," O'Reilly said. Carlson also faces a lawsuit from his ex-producer, Abby Grossberg, who sued him and other Fox executives in March.

☆ Insiders say Tucker Carlson overplayed his hand at Fox but the 'whole universe' of right-wing media is courting him now
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

the Fox insider said. Lachlan Murdoch had defended Carlson time and again, most publicly in April 2021, pushing back against Anti-Defamation League complaints of the anchor's "great replacement theory" comments. Lachlan Murdoch and Rupert Murdoch. A second Fox News insider, who is familiar with conversations happening in Australia, said Lachlan Murdoch was looking long term. The board has also put pressure on the Murdoch family to change things at Fox News.

☆ Lawyers plan to depose Tucker Carlson about 'sexist' workplace later this year amid reports he was ousted from Fox News over misogynistic messages
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Grossberg's lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court against Fox News in March, also names both Carlson and one of his top producers, Justin Wells, as defendants. Their removal from Fox News, however, doesn't mean they can escape scrutiny in the lawsuit, Grossberg's lawyer Tanvir Rahman told Insider. Grossberg's lawsuit was one factor in the decision to fire him, according to the Los Angeles Times. Grossberg's lawsuit alleges she experienced a hostile environment while working as a producer for shows hosted by Carlson and Maria Bartiromo. Fox executives derided Bartiromo with sexist terms, calling her "menopausal," "hysterical," a "diva," and a "crazy bitch," Grossberg's lawsuit claims.

☆ Rupert Murdoch Made the Decision to Ouster Tucker Carlson: LA Times Report
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Nicholas Carlson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Sources told an LA Times reporter that Rupert Murdoch himself made the decision to fire Tucker Carlson. Meanwhile, other outlets reported that Fox Corporation CEO Lachlan Murdoch and Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott made the call. Murdoch was tired of Tucker Carlson's conspiracy theories about the January 6, 2021 riots at the Capitol. Fox News has not addressed the specific reasons the network and Carlson parted ways, saying in a Monday morning statement: "FOX News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways. Editor's note, April 24: This story has been updated to include recent reporting from Axios, The New York Times, and The Washington Post.

☆ Tucker Carlson has now parted ways with 3 major cable news networks
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Chris Kaye | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Tucker Carlson has parted ways with Fox News, the media network announced Monday. Tucker Carlson is out at Fox News and no definitive reason has been given by him or his former employer. "FOX News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways," the network said in a Monday statement. The New York Times reported on Monday that Grossberg's legal team would depose Carlson "in the very near term." "I'm not defending it as the smartest choice, but I think it's the most interesting," Carlson told the Washington Post at the time.

☆ Tucker Carlson leaves Fox News days after Dominion lawsuit settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Helen Coster | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

April 24 (Reuters) - Fox News Media and its top-rated host Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways, less than a week after parent company Fox Corp (FOXA.O) settled for $787.5 million a defamation lawsuit in which Carlson played a starring role. A third person said the senior executive producer of "Tucker Carlson Tonight", Justin Wells, was also let go from Fox News on Monday. After the announcement of Carlson's departure from Fox News, a spokesperson for former President Donald Trump tweeted: "Fox News is controlled opposition." "I stand with Tucker Carlson!" Carlson joined Fox News as a contributor in 2009 and became a co-host of "Fox & Friends Weekend" in 2012.

☆ It's judgment day: Shocking exits of Tucker Carlson, Don Lemon, and Jeff Shell rock the TV industry
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Nathan Mcalone | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

NBCU CEO Jeff Shell, Fox News' Tucker Carlson, and CNN's Don Lemon are all out. Shell's bombshell exit took many insiders by surprise, Insider's Claire Atkinson reported on Sunday. Fox News declined to comment beyond its press release saying it had agreed to "part ways" with Carlson. Media watchers had been primed for a Lemon exit for weeks. With all the news of the past 24 hours, media insiders have barely even gotten a chance to drill down into the second wave of layoffs at Disney, which will number in the thousands.

☆ Tucker Carlson's departure from Fox News comes a month after his ex-producer Abby Grossberg sued him alleging a 'sexist' work environment
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Peter Gelling | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Tucker Carlson's ouster at Fox News comes a month after Abby Grossberg, an ex-producer, filed a lawsuit against him. Fox News has denied her allegations and previously told Insider her legal claims "have no merit." A Fox News representative told Insider last week that the company would "vigorously defend Fox against all of her legal claims which have no merit." The complaint names other Fox executives as well, and lawyers for Grossberg told Insider last week that they remained "as committed as ever" to pursuing litigation. Carlson's departure comes just days after Fox News settled a lawsuit brought by Dominion Voting Systems for $787.5 million.

Carlson, the highest-rated single host at Fox News, did not respond to multiple requests for comment. The decision to part ways with Carlson was made Friday evening by Fox Corporation chief executive Lachlan Murdoch and Fox News chief executive Suzanne Scott, a person familiar with the matter said. During his time as a prime time host on Fox News, Carlson ascended to become one of the most influential figures inside the GOP. In a text on Nov. 5, 2020 — two days after the 2020 election — Carlson wrote his producer Alex Pfeiffer: “We worked really hard to build what we have. Last month, she sued Fox News, Carlson, his executive producer Justin Wells and other figures, as well as Fox’s parent corporation.

☆ Tucker Carlson leaves Fox News in wake of Dominion defamation settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Right-wing prime-time host Tucker Carlson is leaving Fox News immediately, the cable network announced Monday. "FOX News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways," the company said in a statement Monday. Carlson's program, "Tucker Carlson Tonight," has long been one of Fox's top rated programs. Carlson, 53, was among the Fox hosts and executives who were questioned as part of the Dominion lawsuit. While the Dominion lawsuit was unlikely to affect Fox's business, it was unclear the toll it would take on its programming and hosts.

☆ Opinion | Tucker Carlson’s Great Replacement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( Michelle Goldberg | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

“Don’t Expect Fox News to Change After Massive Dominion Payout,” said a Vanity Fair headline. “Will Fox Settlement Alter Conservative Media? On Monday, news broke that Tucker Carlson, Fox News’s highest-rated and most demagogic prime time host, was out, and wouldn’t even get a final show to say goodbye. Grossberg describes an environment in which women of all political persuasions were constantly discussed in terms of sexual desirability. One of Carlson’s bookers, she alleges, was told that she should sleep with Elon Musk to secure an interview.

☆ Fox has more headaches coming after agreeing to pay $787.5 million to settle Dominion's defamation lawsuit
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

After shelling out $787.5 billion to settle Dominion's lawsuit, Fox has more troubles on the way. Atop the list is a separate lawsuit from Smartmatic, another election technology company that sued Fox News Network and its parent company, Fox Corp., in the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election. Smartmatic's defamation lawsuit asks for $2.7 billion in damages and was filed against Fox Corp.; Fox News Network; hosts Jeanine Pirro, Maria Bartiromo, and Lou Dobbs; and Powell and Giuliani. Aside from the Smartmatic case, Fox News has to deal with potential shareholder lawsuits. The overall value of Fox Corp. — which also includes Fox Sports and the streaming service Tubi — is more than $17.6 billion.

April 19 (Reuters) - Fox News on Tuesday disposed of one legal threat with its $787.5 million defamation settlement with Dominion Voting Systems, but the network still faces a $2.7 billion lawsuit from another voting technology company, Smartmatic USA, over its coverage of debunked election-rigging claims. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton/File PhotoSmartmatic is seeking $2.7 billion in damages from Fox and five individuals, including former Trump lawyers and hosts. Smartmatic alleges in its lawsuit in New York County Supreme Court that the defendants knowingly spread false claims that its software was used to flip votes. Conspiracy theorists erroneously claimed Smartmatic owned Dominion, and the companies mounted similar allegations in their lawsuits. Fox denies the allegations, saying in a recent statement the network had a right to report on highly newsworthy allegations of voter fraud.

Dominion accused Fox and its parent company Fox Corp (FOXA.O) of ruining its business by airing claims that its machines were used to rig the 2020 U.S. presidential election in favor of Democrat Joe Biden and against then-president Donald Trump, a Republican. Smartmatic alleges in its lawsuit in New York County Supreme Court that the defendants knowingly spread false claims that its software was used to flip votes. Conspiracy theorists erroneously claimed Smartmatic owned Dominion, and the companies mounted similar allegations in their lawsuits. Fox denies the allegations, saying in a recent statement the network had a right to report on highly newsworthy allegations of voter fraud. Fox has said the allegations are “baseless” and were immediately investigated by outside lawyers.

☆ 16 takeaways from Fox News' historic $787.5 million settlement with Dominion
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +16 min

In the moments after I watched the judge announce the settlement in court, 16 things went through my mind:1. Evidence obtained by Dominion in the lawsuit and filed to court ahead of the settlement appeared to support that theory. There's always the Smartmatic case. In court filings ahead of the settlement, Fox complained about the $1.6 billion price tag Dominion put on the lawsuit. "Would be pretty unreal if you guys like 20x'ed your Dominion investment with these lawsuits," read one text to a Staple Street executive cited in a Fox court filing.

☆ Lawyers for ex-Fox News producer suing for discrimination vow to bring 'meaningful changes' to network after Dominion settlement
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Charles R. Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Lawyers for a former Fox News producer vowed to continue their legal fight on Tuesday. Grossberg "remains as committed as ever to obtaining vindication," her lawyers said. Parisis G. Filippatos and Tanvir H. Rhaman, lawyers for Grossberg, suggested Tuesday that she is not eager to settle her case, at least not just yet. The goal, they claimed, is "bringing about truly real and meaningful institutional changes at Fox News through every vehicle available to us in our legal system." In a statement on Tuesday, the election technology company Smartmatic said it "remains committed" to its own $2.7 billion defamation lawsuit against the network.

☆ Fox News settles Dominion's defamation lawsuit for $787.5 million over election conspiracy theories just as the trial is about to start
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

Fox News settled Dominion's defamation lawsuit over election conspiracy theories for $787.5 million. WILMINGTON, Delaware — Fox News settled Dominion Voting Systems's blockbuster defamation lawsuit just as it was about to go to trial, agreeing to pay it $787.5 million. In a press conference after Davis announced the settlement, Dominion CEO John Poulos criticized Fox for broadcasting lies about the company. Dominion first filed its lawsuit against Fox News and its parent company, Fox Corp., in March 2021. Representatives of Fox News arrive at the justice center for the Dominion Voting Systems' defamation lawsuit against Fox News, in Wilmington, Delaware.

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