Fox News alleged former host Tucker Carlson violated his contract by launching his Twitter show.
According to the claim, a breach of contract may lead Fox News to explore potential legal action against the former host, according to a copy of the outlet’s letter to Carlson’s lawyers obtained by Axios.
Carlson debuted Tucker on Twitter Tuesday evening, which, similar to his work at Fox News, featured the former host monologuing on current events.
“Fox defends its very existence on freedom of speech grounds,” said Carlson’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, in a statement to Axios.
“Now they want to take Tucker Carlson’s right to speak freely away from him because he took to social media to share his thoughts on current events.”
BREAKING: Fox News lawyers have reached out to Tucker Carlson notifying him that he breached his contract by launching his show on Twitter.
So Fox is allowed to fire Tucker but he is not allowed to speak freely online?
In response to the move by Fox, Tucker's lawyers responded… pic.twitter.com/UFGpjNFmqb
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) June 7, 2023
Tucker’s premiere episode of Tucker on Twitter discussed the explosion of the Kakhovka dam in Ukraine, suggesting the possibility of a false flag attempt on behalf of the war-torn country, while legacy media placed blame on Russia and President Vladimir Putin for the attack.
“No one who’s paid to cover these things seem to entertain even the possibility it could have been Ukrainians who did it,” Carlson said, noting the legacy media’s portrayal of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was too “decent for terrorism.”
Carlson shared a video featuring Zelenskyy and South Carolina Senator Lindsay Graham laughing about “Russians dying.”
“It’s the best money we’ve ever spent,” Graham says of the United States’ support for Ukraine during their war with Russia.
The former Fox News host also shared a clip of former South Carolina governor Nikki Haley, who is currently running for the Republican nomination in the 2024 Presidential Election, saying a “win for Ukraine” was in the best interest of the United States.
“You’ve got to be lied to at full volume over a period of years in order to reach conclusions like that,” Carlson said. “What’s happened to the hundreds of billions of U.S. dollars we’ve sent to Ukraine?”
Carlson continued by referencing high-profile news stories including Black Lives Matter (BLM) riots in 2020, 9/11, and the death of Jeffrey Epstein — noting legacy media was hostile in response to those questioning their coverage.
In May, Carlson announced he would bring a new version of Tucker Carlson Tonight to his Twitter account shortly after his April ousting from Fox News.
“The news you consume is a lie,” Carlson said in the video referring to legacy media.
“Facts have been withheld on purpose along with proportion and perspective,” he continued. “You are being manipulated.”
The former Fox News host referred to Twitter as the only platform that allows free speech, noting national conversations incubate and develop on the platform. The former Fox News host also asserted that although Twitter was not a partisan site, legacy media gatekeepers maintained control of the narrative on the platform.
Carlson’s debut episode of Tucker on Twitter has garnered over 107 million views since it’s Tuesday premier.
