Tucker Carlson is a prominent American conservative commentator and writer known for his controversial views and influence in right-wing media. He has hosted several political talk shows and has been a strong advocate of former U.S. President Donald Trump. Carlson has faced criticism for promoting conspiracy theories and making controversial remarks on race, immigration, and women. In 2023, his show on Fox News was canceled, and he has been involved in legal disputes over false statements. Carlson is also known for his criticism of immigration and support for protectionism, as well as his skepticism of U.S. foreign interventions.
Tucker Carlson was born on May 16, 1969, in San Francisco, California.
Carlson supported Ron Paul's 1988 presidential candidacy when Paul ran as the candidate for the Libertarian Party.
Tucker Carlson married Susan Thomson Carlson (née Andrews) on August 10, 1991, at St. George's School.
In 1999, Tucker Carlson interviewed then-Governor George W. Bush for Talk magazine, where he quoted Bush mocking Karla Faye Tucker and frequently using profanity. The piece led to negative publicity for Bush's 2000 presidential campaign.
Carlson has described Roe v. Wade as 'the most embarrassing court decision handed down in the last century'.
On October 17, 2001, Tucker Carlson, alongside his father, was involved in a plane crash as it made its landing on a runway in Dubai.
Carlson quit drinking alcohol in 2002.
Tucker Carlson authored the memoir about his television news experiences, which received favorable reviews.
In October 2004, Jon Stewart appeared on Crossfire and launched into a critique of the show, singling out Tucker Carlson for criticism. This led to a significant impact on Carlson's career and the eventual cancellation of the show.
On January 5, 2005, CNN chief Jonathan Klein told Tucker Carlson that the network had decided not to renew his contract, leading to the cancellation of Crossfire. Carlson later mentioned resigning from Crossfire in April 2004 due to the partisanship.
Tucker Carlson's early evening show Tucker, originally titled The Situation With Tucker Carlson, premiered on June 13, 2005, on MSNBC. The show was eventually canceled by the network on March 10, 2008, owing to low ratings.
On June 18, 2004, Tucker Carlson launched the show Tucker Carlson: Unfiltered on PBS, which was part of an effort to push PBS further to the right ideologically. Carlson announced his departure from the show roughly a year after it started on June 12, 2005.
Tucker Carlson was the first contestant to be eliminated from season 3 of Dancing with the Stars on September 13, 2006.
Tucker Carlson was reportedly floated as a potential candidate for the Libertarian nomination in the 2008 presidential election.
In 2009, Tucker Carlson became a political analyst for Fox News, appearing on various programs before launching his own show.
Carlson stated that he is 'not comfortable with the death penalty under any circumstances'.
In 2013, Carlson expressed opposition to the Episcopal Church's support for same-sex marriage and abortion rights.
In 2015, Tucker Carlson said Australian gun laws were 'insane' and 'childish'.
Tucker Carlson began hosting Tucker Carlson Tonight on Fox News, replacing On the Record. The premiere episode was the network's most watched telecast of the year in the time slot.
Tucker Carlson's show replaced Megyn Kelly at the 9:00 p.m. time slot after she left Fox News.
On February 23, 2017, The Atlantic wrote about Carlson's talent for televised partisan combat, using smirky sarcasm and barbed comebacks, which seem uniquely designed to drive his sparring partners nuts.
Fox News announced that Tucker Carlson Tonight would air at 8:00 p.m. following the cancellation of The O'Reilly Factor.
Journalist Stephen Rodrick wrote in a GQ profile of Carlson in 2017, describing his show as mocking and verbally body-slamming those who disagree with him, and his reluctance to apologize for his mistakes.
In April 2018, Tucker Carlson questioned whether Syrian President Bashar al-Assad was responsible for the Douma chemical attack that had occurred a few days earlier and killed dozens.
In a September 2018 episode of Tucker Carlson Tonight, Carlson coined the nickname 'creepy porn lawyer' to refer to Michael Avenatti, ostensibly in reference to the latter's representing Stormy Daniels, which Avenatti objected to and reportedly found infuriating.
Tucker Carlson Tonight became the second-highest rated cable news show in prime time, with 3.2 million nightly viewers.
A protest by an activist group associated with antifa took place outside Carlson's home, resulting in vandalism.
The show began to be boycotted by at least 20 advertisers after Carlson made controversial remarks about immigration.
On September 10, 2019, Donald Trump fired his national security advisor, John Bolton, after being lobbied by Tucker Carlson. Carlson criticized Bolton for seeking a military strike against Iran and undermining Trump by publicly disagreeing with his decisions.
Tucker Carlson Tonight became the highest-rated cable news show in the U.S., with an average of four million viewers, following remarks criticizing the Black Lives Matter movement.
Carlson brought on Mike Lindell to criticize Dominion Voting Systems and promote unfounded fraud claims. This led to controversy and further discussions about the validity of the claims.
Tucker Carlson is an American political news anchor, reporter, political analyst, and writer known for his conservative views. He has had a successful career in media and is recognized for his strong political opinions.
Tucker Carlson Originals, a series of monthly specials, released on Fox Nation.
In June 2021, Tucker Carlson claimed on his show that a whistleblower informed him about the National Security Agency (NSA) monitoring his electronic communications and planning to leak them to take his show off the air. He also mentioned that the Biden administration was spying on them, which led to a denial statement from the NSA.
Following Tucker Carlson's allegations, the National Security Agency (NSA) issued a rare statement denying that Carlson had been a target of its surveillance and that it never had any intent to have his program taken off the air. This denial came after Carlson's claims of being monitored by the NSA.
Axios reported that Tucker Carlson had been in contact with U.S.-based Kremlin intermediaries to arrange an interview with Vladimir Putin shortly before making his NSA surveillance allegation. This raised concerns and drew attention to his interactions with foreign entities.
The Record, a cybersecurity news website, reported that Tucker Carlson had not been targeted by the NSA but had been unmasked after being mentioned by third parties who were under surveillance. This raised further discussions about privacy and surveillance issues.
Kanye West appeared on Tucker Carlson Tonight and discussed controversial topics including his 'White Lives Matter' shirt, pro-life stance, Black Hebrew Israelite views, COVID-19 vaccine, and antisemitic statements.
Motherboard published leaked unaired footage from Kanye West's interview with Tucker Carlson, revealing additional controversial statements made by West, including Black Hebrew Israelite views, COVID-19 vaccine, and antisemitic remarks.
Tucker Carlson Tonight came to an end on Fox News on April 21, 2023. The timeslot was rebranded as Fox News Tonight and filled by an interim rotation of personalities after Tucker Carlson's departure from the network.
Tucker Carlson and the executive producer of his evening show were dismissed by Fox News. Carlson did not receive advance notice of his dismissal and a rotation of guest hosts filled his old slot until a permanent replacement was found.
Tucker Carlson responded to his departure by tweeting a video that was watched millions of times.
Tucker Carlson announced the relaunch of his show on Twitter and sent a letter to Fox executives alleging a breach of contract.
The first episode of Tucker Carlson's show, called Tucker on Twitter, was released on Twitter. The episode included controversial claims about various events.
Axios reported that Fox News had sent a cease and desist letter to Tucker Carlson on June 12, 2023, alleging that despite the cancellation of his show, Carlson was still under an exclusive contract with the channel through the end of 2024.
Tucker Carlson hosted Donald Trump on Tucker on X, deliberately to conflict with the first 2024 Republican debate.
Tucker Carlson interviewed Larry Sinclair, who claimed to have had a controversial encounter with Barack Obama. The interview received criticism from many, including Elon Musk.
Tucker Carlson traveled to Russia to interview President Vladimir Putin, sparking backlash from American and European journalists.