Fox News’ ratings for its 8:00 p.m. monologue show have decreased since the departure of former host Tucker Carlson.
In a press release, Fox News Media claimed that the network and Carlson had “agreed to part ways.” However, The Wall Street Journal reported that Carlson knew of his departure around 10 minutes before Fox News announced it on the news.
The Associated Press (AP), citing the Nielsen Company, reported that Fox News received approximately 1.3 million viewers for its 8:00 p.m. show, now hosted by Brian Kilmeade. Nielsen noted that marks a stark decrease from the 3 million viewers Carlson had in his last monologue.
The AP said that the viewer counts decreased by 56%. Carlson’s former show, “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” averaged 3 million viewers daily, second only to Fox’s “The Five” as the most popular program on cable television.
Carlson supposedly expected to return to work because as he was wrapping up his last show, which had more than 2.5 million views, he said, “We’ll be back on Monday.” But in Fox News’ press release, the outlet declared that “Carlson’s last program was Friday, April 21st.”
After news of Carlson’s departure went public, some people announced on social media that they had canceled their subscription to the Fox Nation streaming service.
Carlson posted a short video on Twitter that received more than 69 million views. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) said Carlson would continue to “shine brighter and stronger than ever.”
In the video, Carlson attacked the American Media and U.S. political system, arguing that the U.S. is becoming a “one-party state.”
“Both political parties and their donors have reached consensus on what benefits them and they actively collude to shut down any conversation about it,” Carlson said.
“Suddenly the United States looks very much like a one-party state. That’s a depressing realization, but it’s not permanent,” he added.
“Where can you still find Americans saying true things?” Carlson asked. “There aren’t many places left, but there are some.”
Carlson was fired without explanation. His departure may follow a former employee’s lawsuit regarding a “toxic” work atmosphere at his show, offensive statements by Carlson that were made public as part of the Dominion Voting System lawsuit against Fox, and his comments about the protests of Jan. 6, 2021.
