Controversial right-wing firebrand Tucker Carlson leaves Fox News in shock announcement after $787m settlement
24 April 2023, 17:28 | Updated: 24 April 2023, 17:29
Fox News host Tucker Carlson, whose hard right views transformed him into a celebrity and a darling of some American conservatives, has left the channel in the wake of an expensive legal settlement.
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Carlson is known for his bombastic monologues which made him a household name in the US.
But in a shock announcement, Fox News said he and the network were parting ways in the wake of its $787.5m settlement with a company that makes electronic voting machines.
Dominion had sued Fox News over lies made on the network about its machines, which came during a time when Donald Trump was trying to promote conspiracies about his 2020 election defeat to Joe Biden.
It emerged during the legal action that, far removed from his on-air persona, Carlson had said he "passionately" hated Trump and derided his time as president.
Carlson was part of a group chat of Fox News hosts in which members appeared to doubt claims of election fraud. It was expected that Carlson would testify during the trial, which was stopped after the settlement.
Fox did not immediately say why Carlson, whose show aired between 8pm and 9pm eastern time, had left.
His show was the second-highest rated on US cable TV between March 27 and April 2.
He will be replaced by different hosts until a permanent anchor is hired.
"We thank him for his service to the network as a host and prior to that as a contributor," Fox News said.
The messages that emerged during Dominion's legal action has severely embarrassed the right-wing broadcaster.
The impact to the reputations of its traditionally popular hosts like Carlson could prove more damaging than the mammoth pay out.
When it settled with Dominion, Fox News said: "We acknowledge the court's rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false.
"We are hopeful that our decision to resolve this dispute with Dominion amicably, instead of the acrimony of a divisive trial, allows the country to move forward from these issues."
Dominion's lawsuit said Fox "sold a false story of election fraud in order to serve its own commercial purposes, severely injuring Dominion in the process".
