MSNBC guest suggests Tucker Carlson's ousting could be a strategy in Fox News' carriage fee negotiations
Published
Citation From the April 24, 2023, edition of MSNBC's Deadline: White House
NICHOLAS CONFESSORE (GUEST): The story of Tucker Carlson over the years has been one where he has withstood controversy over controversy.
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So, why now? And that's the real question we're all reporting on today, me and Jeremy and many others who cover this. I'm not sure we know yet, but I do think the timing of it in conjunction with the end of the trial and the Grossberg complaint are probably significant.
I also would point out that Fox is in the middle of trying to negotiate carriage fees with cable providers. And it would be very in keeping with the Murdoch style to essentially try to assuage concern about their programming with those other cable companies by cutting someone loose.
And they often just deep-six somebody and see if that satisfies the desire for blood, so to speak. And then they move on, they test the waters. That's how they got rid of Lou Dobbs. That's how Trish Regan came off the air. And so I'm really curious to see if this is a measured approach to some larger problem or a specific response to something that Tucker did or said.