Earlier this week, Fox News displayed a graphic at the end of Fox News Tonight that called President Joe Biden a “wannabe dictator”. Former network host Tucker Carlson has lambasted the network for its walk-back of the opinion.
After the arrest and arraignment of Donald Trump Tuesday, the former president was about to begin a speech to supporters. Simultaneously, Joe Biden was scheduled to speak. The network showed both figures, before a Fox News Alert that read “Wannabe Dictator Speaks at the White House After Having His Political Rival Arrested”. It was quickly taken down before Hannity began.
During the latest edition of Tucker on Twitter, the former Fox News host claimed the producer — now identified as Alexander McCaskill — has departed the company over the incident, before taking aim at his former employer.
“Those words were up for less than 30 seconds, but the effect was immediate. Inside Fox, the women who run the network panicked,” said Carlson. “First, they scolded the producer who put the banner on the screen. Less than 24 hours after that, he resigned. He’d been at Fox for more than a decade. He was considered one of the most capable people in the building. He offered to stay for the customary two weeks, but Fox told him to clear out his desk and leave immediately.
“Then the company issued a public apology for the 27-second long ‘wannabe dictator’ line. ‘The chyron was taken down immediately,’ Fox’s PR department said and then added ominously, it was ‘addressed’. That was all true, but it was not enough to save Fox News from the ensuing scandal.”
Carlson continued by alleging a double standard in coverage of the current President.
“If some cable news producer had called Joe Biden a genius or accused him of being secretly Sudanese, would anyone be yelling about it? Would Fox News have apologized for it? Probably not. But calling Joe Biden a wannabe dictator, that stung,” concluded Carlson.
The anger from Carlson towards his former network comes after he was reportedly given a cease and desist letter from Fox News in an attempt to end his Tucker on Twitter series. Fox News contends it holds the rights to Carlson’s video projects, while he alleges his social media activities are protected under the First Amendment.
