First the specifics of what was, undoubtedly, the wildest day in recent media history.
On Monday morning, the first of a one-two stunner: Fox News announced Tucker Carlson, its most popular on-air personality, had parted ways with the conservative network. “Parted ways,” in this case, was a polite way to say he was fired.
The media world was picking its collective jaw off the floor when the second half of Monday’s media explosion came. Don Lemon and CNN were “parting ways.” Again, another kid-gloves way to say he was fired.
Two big names, both fired, in a matter of minutes. And, by all accounts, totally coincidental in terms of the timing.
It may take a few days and plenty of leaks to find out exactly why Carlson and Lemon are out of jobs this morning, but we do have a few clues.
Let’s start with Carlson.
Just a week after Fox News settled its lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems by agreeing to pay Dominion $787.5 million, Fox rid itself of the prime-time star who played a prominent role in why Dominion was suing it in the first place. Carlson was one of the hosts whose shows (and private messages) helped endorse false conspiracies about the 2020 presidential election.
Did the settlement have anything to do with firing? Reports are that it was not an official part of the settlement. But Fox News could not have been pleased it is writing a check for three-quarters of a billion dollars and that Carlson is partly to blame for that. Carlson’s executive producer also is out, but no other executives or on-air hosts were fired Monday. That would suggest there is way more to Carlson’s firing than the Dominion settlement.
The Los Angeles Times’ Stephen Battaglio reports that Rupert Murdoch himself, the big boss of Fox Corp., had his hands on Carlson’s back as he was shoved out the door. Battaglio wrote that Carlson’s exit was partly related to a lawsuit from former producer Abby Grossberg, who claims she was bullied on a show that had a toxic, misogynistic and hostile work environment. In addition, Battaglio reported, Murdoch was concerned about Carlson’s Jan. 6 coverage, which included conspiracy theories that the Capitol attack was provoked by government agents.
The Washington Post’s Sarah Ellison reported that Fox Corp. CEO Lachlan Murdoch and Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott made the decision to fire Carlson on Friday night, which would have been sometime around what turned out to be his final show. He closed that show by telling his audience, “We’ll be back Monday.” That never happened. He was told Monday morning that he was out.
I’ll get into more thoughts about Carlson in just a few moments. But let’s switch gears to the other shoe to drop Monday: the dismissal of Lemon from CNN.
Don Lemon out at CNN
Lemon tweeted a statement Monday saying he had been “terminated.” He complained that he was told by his agent and not the company and that it “is clear that there are some larger issues at play.” He did not say what those “larger issues” were.
CNN Communications tweeted that Lemon’s statement was inaccurate, but then CNN CEO Chris Licht sent out a memo to staff saying Lemon was no longer at the network.
The firing came shortly after Lemon co-hosted “CNN This Morning” on Monday, but Axios’ Sara Fischer appeared on CNN and said that it wasn’t that abrupt, and that Lemon and CNN had reached a deal to part ways.
It was a big deal because it came on the heels of the Carlson firing, but we shouldn’t be stunned by the news. It felt as if Lemon was on shaky ground for a while. After being taken off CNN’s prime-time lineup and shipped to co-host a new morning program with Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins, Lemon made several missteps in conversations about women. The most prominent was saying Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, the 51-year-old former governor of South Carolina, wasn’t in her “prime,” adding, “A woman is considered to be in her prime in her 20s and 30s and maybe 40s.”
Lemon apologized, was suspended briefly and had to undergo corporate training.
The New York Times’ Michael M. Grynbaum, John Koblin and Benjamin Mullin wrote, “Allies of Mr. Lemon had hoped he would turn the page from the incident. But executives at CNN gradually concluded that his future at CNN had become untenable, according to two people who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the internal discussions were sensitive. In recent weeks, CNN’s bookers had discovered that some guests did not want to appear on the air with Mr. Lemon, and research on the morning show reviewed by CNN executives found that his popularity with audiences had fallen, one of the people said.”
The Washington Post’s Paul Farhi and Elahe Izadi wrote, “As the co-anchor and leading face of CNN’s new morning program, ‘CNN This Morning,’ he was under increasing pressure within CNN over the show’s poor ratings. At the same time, advertisers were balking about sponsoring the show, and some would-be guests, such as White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, were expressing reluctance to be interviewed.”
There were further reports that there were tensions on the set of the CNN morning show, and you have to ask if Lemon, who once hosted his own prime-time show, was content sharing the morning desk with two co-hosts.
CNN plans to continue the morning show with Harlow and Collins hosting.
Now, back to Carlson …
Why is Tucker Carlson out?
Fox Corp. chair Rupert Murdoch, shown here in 2019. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)
There is one major theory for why Carlson is out besides the Dominion case, Murdoch being worried about the Grossberg suit and Carlson’s Jan. 6 coverage.
It’s that Fox News went to Carlson and told him to tone down the rhetoric, to stop stirring the pot with such divisive conversations, and that Carlson balked. Could he have thought he was too big to fire?
Again, this is just a theory.
Another TV insider told me to not underestimate just how troublesome it is for Fox News to write a $787.5 million check over the Dominion case and Carlson’s role in all that. As The Washington Post’s Jeremy Barr and Sarah Ellison wrote, “Though Carlson largely avoided trafficking in those specific conspiracy theories and was not one of the Fox stars named in the suit, his private messages were among thousands of internal communications made public during its progress through the courts that caused angst and embarrassment for Fox and heightened the company’s legal jeopardy.”
In fact, many are pointing to the many Carlson criticisms of management in the pretrial discoveries in the Dominion case that could have led to his dismissal. Those weren’t the only embarrassing revelations to come out of Carlson’s deposition for the Dominion trial.
Lachlan Cartwright, who writes The Daily Beast’s Confider media newsletter, reported that it was Carlson’s repeated use of a very derogatory word to describe women, in particular Trump lawyer Sidney Powell, that weighed in Fox’s decision to fire him. Cartwright wrote, “Carlson being nailed in court documents for his repeated use of the overtly misogynist (word) was a key factor in his demise, as Fox News had rid itself of Roger Ailes and Bill O’Reilly after years of sexual-harassment complaints and could not have its biggest star undermining any supposed progress.”
And there’s this, as laid out by The Washington Post’s Aaron Blake: “Carlson was clearly the most powerful Fox host and likely the most powerful TV journalist in the country. And he used that power to flout journalistic standards and operate in ways that created demonstrable problems for Fox — and could create problems in a future environment created by the Dominion v. Fox suit.”
A good day?
There’s plenty of speculation as to why Tucker Carlson is out, but I wrote a column for Poynter saying the most important part of this story isn’t why he is out, just that it’s good news that he is out.
I spoke with NPR TV critic and longtime media reporter Eric Deggans about what makes Carlson so dangerous.
Deggans told me, “What makes Tucker Carlson dangerous is that he spouts a ton of misinformation and disinformation that has the imprimatur of a major cable TV news channel so people believe that what he is saying is true.”
As MSNBC’s Nicolle Wallace said about Carlson: “He’s the champion of conspiracy theories.”
Having Fox News as a platform, with a loyal and sizable audience, is what made Carlson dangerous. His audience badly wants to believe what he says. “And,” Deggans said, “it appears on a major cable TV news channel that they trust.”
Not only does Carlson deal in misinformation and disinformation, Deggans said, but his commentary is often rooted in prejudices.
“It often reinforces stereotypes,” Deggans said. “Or upholds ideas held by white supremacists and that’s even more damaging. It’s telling people that their racism is based in fact, rather than based in myths and stereotypes. That’s a serious problem.”
The Los Angeles Times’ Mark Z. Barabak wrote, “There might have been a smirk and own-the-libs wink when Carlson made such egregiously over-the-top remarks. But there was nothing the least funny about how some in his audience responded. It is too much to blame a single individual, as despicable as Carlson may be, for leading a whole country into a slough of anger, backbiting, recrimination and mistrust. But there is something particularly revolting about a person who was not only willing and eager to contribute to that poisoned atmosphere but did so knowing he was promoting a dangerous and explosive pack of lies.”
What’s next for Carlson?
Here’s what I wrote for my Poynter column Monday:
On the surface, there wouldn’t be many landing spots for him — at least not as big as Fox News. He’s not going to CNN, MSNBC or one of the major networks. My guess is he thinks he might be too cool and important to go to another conservative network such as Newsmax or OAN. But several people who know the TV business told me that Carlson could try to go to a place like that and turn it into his own personal media brand or company. Or he could start from scratch with his own media company with podcasts, newsletters, websites and YouTube channels, for instance.
Whatever happens, you can bet Carlson is going to spin this as though he is just a guy who was fighting for the Everyday American and he has been silenced; canceled for speaking the truth. In other words, he’ll play the martyr. That will play with some of his diehard fans. But many of his loyal viewers might just shrug.
“When Fox lets go of big stars,” said New York Times reporter Jeremy W. Peters on MSNBC, mentioning past Fox News contributors such as Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin, “these people were let go because they led people to believe that they were bigger than Fox. As far as Fox is concerned, and I think they’re right, no one person is ever bigger than the network itself.”
Carlson certainly isn’t going to fade into obscurity, unless that’s what he wants. But even if he does start a podcast and tries to orchestrate a comeback on a new or existing platform, it’s hard to imagine him having the reach that he did on Fox News.
Think of Beck and Megyn Kelly and Bill O’Reilly. How have their careers gone since leaving the loud megaphone they held at Fox News?
Politico’s Jack Shafer wrote, “What Beck, O’Reilly and Kelly didn’t understand at the time, and what somebody should explain to Carlson this evening, is that Fox itself, which convenes the audience, is the star. And the star maker is whomever network owner Rupert Murdoch has assigned to run the joint.”
What does Fox News do?
(AP Photo/Mary Altaffer, File)
For now, Fox News isn’t going to name a permanent replacement. I would be shocked if they do anytime soon. For the moment, they’ll go with rotating guest hosts. It will be interesting to see what the ratings are like.
When they finally do replace Tucker Carlson, it will say a lot about what they thought of him and maybe even why they fired him.
Will it be a Carlson clone? Or will it be a more humble, less antagonistic commentator who won’t get them sued?
In his Politico column, Jack Shafer wasn’t hopeful that Carlson’s firing is the beginning of a new day and a new way at Fox News. He wrote, “Finding a Carlson substitute will be as easy for Fox as it was finding an O’Reilly substitute. There’s always an understudy or two at Fox who has learned the art of demagoguery — how to pander to the stolen election liars, incite white nationalists and make long-distance love to Vladimir Putin. Ensconced in the 8 p.m. slot that was Carlson’s and O’Reilly’s before that, the new host will succeed enough to imagine having become a star, too, until the light dims and the Murdoch’s network births yet another star.”
But maybe there’s a sliver of hope. In an email to me Monday night, veteran media journalist and former CNN and New York Times reporter Brian Stelter joked that he would reserve the right to retract his comments should Fox News go full QAnon. “But,” he wrote, “I think this moment may be Rupert Murdoch’s attempt to drag his cable network back toward something resembling reality. Right-wing, yes. Striving to elect Republicans, yes. But reality-based.”
Echoing comments made by Deggans, Stelter said, “Tucker Carlson’s show existed in a different reality that was quite derelict and dangerous. He wanted his audience to tremble in fear, not think freely.”
Stelter added, “I don’t think the Murdochs are going to hire a ‘Tucker Jr.’ for the newly open time slot. I think they’re going to hire someone they can trust — someone who exists in the same reality as Mike Pence, not Donald Trump. But let’s be clear-eyed about the fact that Carlson has shifted the entire political environment further to the right, so for him, this is a ‘mission accomplished’ moment.”
First in The Poynter Report: Stelter’s cover
Speaking of Brian Stelter, here’s an exclusive look at the cover of his upcoming book, and check out who is on the cover:
(Courtesy: Brian Stelter)
Stelter’s book — “Network of Lies: The Epic Saga of Fox News, Donald Trump, and the Battle for American Democracy” — is due out in November. It will be published by One Signal, an imprint of Simon & Schuster’s Atria division. The cover will be released to the rest of the public later Tuesday.
Other thoughts and tidbits on the Carlson-Lemon news
- Writing for Vanity Fair, Brian Stelter with “Why Tucker Carlson’s Exit From Fox News Looks Like an Execution.”
- The Washington Post’s Erik Wemple with “Tucker Carlson, a terrible individual, leaves Fox News.”
- Also in the Post, Philip Bump with “Now what for Tucker Carlson? Now what for Fox News?”
- The Daily Beast’s Erin Gloria Ryan with “Dance on Tucker Carlson’s Fox Grave, but Fear His Zombie.”
- The New York Times’ Jonathan Swan and Maggie Haberman reported that those inside the Donald Trump camp were stunned by the news that Carlson was let go by Fox News. They wrote, “One close ally of Mr. Trump said he was happy that Mr. Carlson would not be able to give rocket fuel to any other candidate on Fox’s airwaves. Yet for some candidates in the Republican primary field, the loss of Mr. Carlson could mean a minefield they would have to navigate is now gone from a prominent platform.”
- Politico’s Matt Berg and Ekaterina Pechenkina with “Lawmakers are worked up about Tucker Carlson’s exit from Fox News.”
- And about the Lemon dismissal, Variety’s Brian Steinberg has more, including that the remaining anchors — Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins — will address the story this morning.
Another major departure
As was reported Sunday night, NBCUniversal chief executive Jeff Shell has stepped down, admitting to an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the company.
On Monday, more details emerged.
Shell was forced out after CNBC International anchor Hadley Gamble accused Shell of sexual harassment and sex discrimination in a complaint to the company. Comcast, which owns NBCUniversal, said in a securities filing Monday that “evidence was uncovered that corroborated the allegations.” Shell was fired without severance.
In his statement Sunday night, Shell wrote, “I had an inappropriate relationship with a woman in the company, which I deeply regret. I’m truly sorry I let my Comcast and NBCUniversal colleagues down …”
Deadline’s Anthony D’Alessandro, Dominic Patten and Jill Goldsmith broke the story that it was Gamble who filed the complaint. They wrote, “Deadline has learned that Shell had a relationship with Gamble which started about 11 years ago and continued sporadically up until a couple of years ago when it ended. Shell was chairman of NBCUniversal International from 2011 to 2013 before becoming chairman, Universal Filmed Entertainment and eventually NBCU CEO in 2020.”
Gamble anchors a show from CNBC’s Middle East headquarters. Her contract is set to expire this year and, according to several reporters, is not expected to be renewed. The New York Times’ Benjamin Mullin reported Gamble filed her complaint in March.
Major layoffs at ESPN
(AP Photo/David Kohl, File)
On any other day, this would have been the big media news: the ESPN layoffs have begun.
The first round of cuts — all part of bigger companywide cost-cutting at Disney — began Monday and is expected to continue through Wednesday. On-air talent is not expected to be impacted by this round of cuts, but it has been widely reported that many on-air personalities could be asked to take pay cuts, in some cases substantial ones, to remain with ESPN.
The cost-cutting is not expected to affect such stars as Stephen A. Smith, “SportsCenter” anchor Scott Van Pelt, and “Monday Night Football” announcers Joe Buck and Troy Aikman.
Among the cuts Monday was Mike Soltys. Sports fans don’t know who that is, but those who cover the media do. Soltys, vice president of communications, has been with ESPN since its inception in 1979. And as someone who used to work with him on a regular basis when I was a sportswriter, I can tell you that you won’t meet a kinder and more cooperative gentleman.
Soltys, appropriate to his sense of humor, tweeted, “My final statement as ESPN Spokesperson: ‘43 Amazing Years. Wow. We wish him well.’”
Another big name caught up in the cuts was Russell Wolff, executive vice president and general manager of ESPN+.
Insider journalists hold one-day walkout over proposed layoffs
For this item, I turned it over to my Poynter colleague Angela Fu.
More than 250 unionized journalists at Insider walked off the job Monday in protest of the company’s plans to lay off 60 of their colleagues.
Insider announced Thursday that it plans to cut its workforce by 10%, or roughly 110 people, due to “economic headwinds.” Those layoffs include 60 people within the approximately 300-member union. Because the Insider Union is a newly organized unit without a contract, it enjoys “status quo” protections under federal labor law. The company must bargain with the union before it can lay off members.
In 2021, Insider’s American editorial employees announced they were unionizing with the NewsGuild. They have been negotiating a first contract with the company for more than a year and a half and have held actions like “lunchouts” to push negotiations forward. But Monday’s 24-hour strike was the union’s first work stoppage.
Several journalists picketed outside the company’s Manhattan headquarters Monday morning, wielding signs like “Insider’s vibes are rancid” and “Insider is nothing without us.”
Insider spokesperson Mario Ruiz wrote in an email that employees who participated in the walkout would not be paid. Union steward and tech reporter William Antonelli told The Daily Beast that the union will create a hardship fund for employees who can’t afford the docked pay and that more walkouts in the future are possible.
“Insider Union members are demanding that the company bargain in good faith and rescind the effort to push their colleagues out of the newsroom,” NewsGuild of New York president Susan DeCarava said in a press release. “We are demanding a fair contract that will make Insider the best it can be for everyone.”
Media tidbits
- Oh, want even more big news from Monday? Four-time NFL MVP Aaron Rodgers was traded from the Green Bay Packers to the New York Jets. Here’s ESPN’s Adam Schefter breaking the news live on the air.
- And ESPN’s Bill Barwell writes, “Aaron Rodgers trade: Super Bowl or bust for the Jets? What’s next?”
- The New York Times’ Michael D. Shear with “Biden Has Held the Fewest News Conferences Since Reagan. Any Questions?”
Hot type
- Whew, this newsletter is already long because of all the media news on Monday. So here’s a fun read for you for today’s Hot Type: Esquire’s Corey Atad and Josh Rosenberg with “13 Great Movies That Were Booed at the Cannes Film Festival.”
More resources for journalists
- Subscribe to Poynter’s Friday newsletter, Open Tabs with Poynter managing editor Ren LaForme, and get behind-the-scenes stories only available to subscribers.
- Telling the Stories of Faith and the Faithful — New York City, May 12 (Seminar) — Register by April 21.
- Transform your newsroom’s reporting on crime and criminal justice with our 24-week online seminar. Apply by April 21.
- Editorial Integrity and Leadership Initiative — (Sept. – April, 2024) (Hybrid) — Apply by May 15.
Have feedback or a tip? Email Poynter senior media writer Tom Jones at tjones@poynter.org.
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