Opinion | A wild Tucker Carlson is on the loose

Photo courtesy of Gage Skidmore / Flickr

Assistant Opinions Editor Aaron Anastos reacts to the news of Tucker Carlson leaving Fox News.

By Aaron Anastos, Assistant Opinions Editor

Tucker Carlson somehow manages to sully the already rock-bottom reputations of those few on-air personalities who sport bow ties.

Granted, he did abandon the accessory back in 2004 after Jon Stewart came on his “Crossfire” program on CNN and dealt him a scathing dialectical onslaught that some believe led to his dismissal from the program merely three months later. 

However, Carlson is likely to continue harming the American public beyond his offensive style choices — likewise, his dismissal on Monday from his position as primetime host for Fox News doesn’t guarantee the face of American punchability will vanish forever.

Ever since snagging a primetime 8 p.m. slot in 2016 for his program “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” Carlson had dug in his heels at the network. He went on to reinvent himself with a show that not only constantly appeased Trump’s antics but regularly invited white nationalists, conspiracy theorists and neo-Nazis — all three not altogether independent of another — as guests. 

That is, until the Dominion Voting Systems lawsuit shook Fox News to its core and, in the process, exposed a multitude of texts among the on-air primetime royalty of Fox News that expressed their disdain for former President Trump.

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This sparked the idea that perhaps Carlson was only using his position as the massively lucrative and high-rated golden goose of Fox News’ primetime lineup — perpetuating inflammatory and divisive rhetoric to further his own means.

Whatever the case, Carlson’s sudden firing by the head of the network himself, Rupert Murdoch, means that not only will he not have a final show, but he will have to clear out his atrociously decorated office immediately — in no small part thanks to the discrimination lawsuit filed against him by Abby Grossberg. 

The third time being fired by a network might be the charm for ridding ourselves of Mr. Carlson for good, but that sentiment might be a tad optimistic. 

Having made a career out of spreading the poisonous notion of “us versus them” on his primetime program, Carlson will undoubtedly find that old habits die hard. Not only has he received, whether genuinely or not, job offers from Russian state networks, but American far-right channels like Newsmax will likely be more than happy to give him a chair at the table. 

This begs the question: What will Carlson do next? Will he find safe harbor with the far-right friends he made during his stint on Fox News, or will he simply find the next ideological group on which to leech, stirring tensions and stacking his bank account before moving on once more?

This is one of many predictions of what Carlson could make of this next stage of his career. But that in itself is a specific prediction: He will keep his career.

There is no doubt that Carlson will fail to vanish into the woodwork following his dismissal. He has spent too much time building an avid fan base and reputation to simply throw it all away.

Several previously fired Fox hosts have gone on to salvage their careers, including Bill O’Reilly, who runs a successful podcast and has published a series of bestselling books. Carlson may have lost his primetime slot, but he is by no means less dangerous.

Take Carlson’s own history as an example. 

Carlson is reported as having said that after his firing from MSNBC in 2008, he suffered a mental breakdown that led to having to sell his house. Ever since, he has made a career of stoking harmful sentiments in a seemingly vengeful, yet no less successful, manner.  

After his dismissal from Fox News, there is no reason to believe Carlson will not react similarly. 

Carlson knows that preying on the emotions of an incendiary demographic merit fantastic results. The high ratings of “Tucker Carlson Tonight” and his long career in television are evidence enough. 

A wild Tucker Swanson McNear Carlson is on the loose, and there is no telling where he may pounce next.

Just remember to keep Jon Stewart on speed dial just in case Carlson needs another dialectical beatdown. But knowing him, he will live on for a while longer without much hope of removal from the American living room, as all nasty carpet stains do. 

 

Aaron is a freshman in DGS.

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