Winners and Losers in Tucker Carlson’s Execution

By J. Max Robins, April 26, 2023

The primetime “don’t-let-the-door-hit-you” execution of Tucker Carlson at the hands of Fox News supremo Rupert Murdoch and his son Lachlan means great gain for some and extreme pain for others. Here is a highly opinionated list of who stands to rise and who’s likely to stumble in the wake of Carlson’s surprising fall from Murdochian grace.

Winner: Rupert & Lachlan Murdoch

Sure, Fox News has taken a ratings hit from Tucker’s departure, as has the parent-company’s stock price. However, if past upheaval at Murdoch’s cable news machine is any indication, the dips will be short-lived. By jettisoning the host with the best demo numbers, the Murdochs are putting some of the fallout from their $787 million settlement with Dominion Voting Systems behind them, as well as aiding their case in two pending suits—$2.7 billion vs. Smartmatic, and a discrimination suit filed against Fox News and Carlson by his ex-head booker Abby Grossberg.

Loser: Donald Trump

Carlson wrote in emails revealed in the Dominion suit against Fox News that he “passionately hated” The Donald and viewed him as “demonic” and a “destroyer.” Still, just days before he was kicked to the curb, Carlson had Trump on his show for a suck-up interview. With Carlson gone and Rupert Murdoch weary of Trump, the MAGA man has lost access to a powerful primetime ally.

Winner: Jesse Watters, or any Fox News talking head who gets Carlson’s perch

As Kat Abu, a savvy Fox watchdog for Media Matters for America noted when we spoke last month, “Tucker needs Fox News more than the network needs him. They could put Jesse Watters at 8 p.m., and the Fox News audience would follow. Whoever is there becomes the face of Fox News to its audience of mostly old people.” Time will tell if Watters, the one-time “man-on-the-street,” will become the network’s man in the prime chair. Then we’d see how well his antics—like metaphorically suggesting going in for “the kill shot” on Anthony Fauci—will go over.

Loser: Vladimir Putin and Victor Orbán

Until last Friday, no one on earth had a more powerful primetime pulpit offering full-throttled support to the fascist strongmen of Russia and Hungary than Tucker Carlson. Carlson touted his support for Putin’s invasion of Ukraine, just days before his ouster, even after it was condemned by the Hague, the international criminal court that issued a warrant for Putin’s arrest in March on charges of war crimes. Gleefully, in early August 2021, Carlson did his show from Hungary that played like a week-long advertorial for Orbán’s iron-fisted rule. Sadly for the Hungarian dictator, those days are gone.

Winner: Bryan Freedman

The go-to Tinseltown litigator was retained by Tucker Carlson to negotiate both his exit package, and that of Carlson’s also-ousted opposite, CNN’s Don Lemon.

Worth noting: This might also be a win for O’Gara Coach, the Beverly Hills exotic car dealers of Ferraris, Aston Martins & Bentleys just a short lawsuit win away from Freedman’s Century City office.

Loser: The Daily Stormer, Alex Jones, Marjorie Taylor Greene, et al

As The New York Times’ Nicholas Confessore chronicled a year ago, Carlson created the most powerful “racist” and “nativist” bully pulpit in all of the news media. Before millions of viewers, Carlson perpetually promoted and normalized a laundry list of extremist views, such as pushing the white nationalist, anti-immigration “great replacement theory,” and the lie that the January 6th insurrection was a nothing burger. Without his help, other spitting angry voices lose a posh ally.

Winner: Sean Hannity & The Five

No, that’s not the name of a bad ‘80s one-hit-wonder band. With Tucker gone, Sean Hannity is, for the time-being, the primetime top dog at Fox News. And The Five, a show which in recent times has been pulling a bigger audience than Carlson, is now more essential than ever to Fox’s success. Who knows, maybe The Five, goes to primetime as The Eight.

And Tucker…?

For years, there’s been speculation that Carlson might make a White House run. From the far corners of the left, there’s even been speculation that his firing was some Machiavellian Murdochian (same thing, right?) plan to put Tucker in the 2024 presidential race. Certainly, he’s now free to do so, and perhaps he will throw his bowtie into the ring. Being a fired TV star worked wonders for a now-twice-impeached ex-president. And what is Tucker Carlson if not the perfect Apprentice.

J. Max Robins (@jmaxrobins) is  executive director of the Center for Communication. He was formerly editor-in-chief of Broadcasting & Cable, and has contributed to many publications including the Wall Street Journal, Columbia Journalism Review and Forbes. 

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