Tucker Carlson Ousted in Wake of Dominion Settlement

Tucker Carlson’s last week at Fox News coincided with the network agreeing to pay Dominion Voting Systems more than $787.5 million to settle a lawsuit.

And some are speculating Carlson’s abrupt departure might have much to do with it.

“FOX News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways,” Fox News announced in a statement Monday. “We thank him for his service to the network as a host and prior to that as a contributor.

There was no immediate explanation from Fox about why Carlson was leaving, but the timing coincided with the settlement with Dominion Voting Systems for $787.5 million — roughly half of the $1.6 billion sought.

Carlson became the network’s most popular personality after replacing Bill O’Reilly in the primetime lineup in 2016.

Fox agreed last week to pay Dominion Voting Systems around $787.5 million, admitting “certain claims” it made during former President Donald Trump’s 2020 election challenge were false.

The reporting mostly concerned other Fox News programs, not Carlson’s, but his name did come up during the case, primarily because of email and text messages that were revealed as part of the lawsuit.

Carlson and other Fox hosts were caught in private messages doubting their own network’s allegations about Dominion’s role in the supposed election fraud, while also being concerned Fox was losing audience among Trump fans to competitors including Newsmax.

“Sidney Powell is lying by the way,” Carlson wrote to a fellow Fox News host Nov. 18, 2020, The New York Times reported. “I caught her. It’s insane.

“Our viewers are good people and they believe it,” he added in another text.

In other texts, Carlson privately criticized Trump, saying he hated him passionately.

A few weeks ago, Carlson devoted his entire show to an interview with Trump.

“We are pleased to have reached a settlement of our dispute with Dominion Voting Systems,” the network wrote in a statement after the settlement. “We acknowledge the court’s rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false. This settlement reflects Fox’s continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards. 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.”

Carlson was recently named in a lawsuit filed by Abby Grossberg, a Fox News producer fired after claiming Fox lawyers had pressured her to give misleading testimony in the Dominion lawsuit. Grossberg had gone to work for Carlson after leaving Maria Bartiromo’s Fox show.

Her lawsuit says Grossberg learned “she had merely traded in one overtly misogynistic work environment for an even crueler one — this time, one where unprofessionalism reigned supreme, and the staff’s distaste and disdain for women infiltrated almost every workday decision.”

Fox has countered with its own lawsuit, trying to bar Grossberg from disclosing confidential discussions with Fox attorneys and saying in a statement “her allegations in connection with the Dominion case are baseless.”

She told the Daily Mail that the firing looked to her like an admission of guilt by Fox.

‘This is a step towards accountability for the election lies and baseless conspiracy theories spread by Fox News, something I witnessed firsthand at the network, as well as for the abuse and harassment I endured while Head of Booking and Senior Producer for Tucker Carlson Tonight,’ Grossberg said, according to DailyMail.com

‘I think this is great for America! It’s a big win for viewers of cable news, not just those who watch Fox.’

Dominion Voting Systems still has a pending lawsuit against Newsmax, but the media outlet says there are different facts in its case that will enable it to prevail in court.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.