Fundamental ally of the movement Make America Great Again (MAGA) of Donald Trump, the former anchor of Fox News and right-wing influencer Tucker Carlson may have become an “enemy of the state” after the start of the American offensive in Iran. He is investigated for allegedly having contact with Iranians before the start of the ongoing war in the Middle East.
The journalist claims to face accusations based on Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), law used in the USA to regulate those who act as agents of foreign interests. Carlson declared that he did not believe in a formal complaint, but decided to make the fact public due to the moment of tension that any war increases.
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Regardless of the process, Carlson has been a strident voice against military operations in Iran. He called the offensive “disgusting and evil”in addition to being supposedly contrary to American interests and pro-Israel. His criticisms took him, almost immediately, from the position of first-time ally to that of an opponent of the Republican government.
“Tucker has lost his way,” Trump told ABC News anchor Jonathan Karl on Thursday last week. “I’ve known this for a long time; he’s not MAGA. MAGA is saving our country, making us great again. MAGA is ‘America First,’ and Tucker is none of that. He has no ability to understand (the movement).”
Trajectory and influence
Carlson was received several times by Trump at the White House and was a prestigious figure in the former president’s orbit. He was one of the first communicators to bet on Trump’s election, even before the 2015 primaries that chose him as candidate.
Known for his criticism of immigration, Carlson claims that the US has been harmed by Democratic governments. He also argues that the anti-racist protests following the death of George Floyd created a feeling of “reverse racism” in the country. With these themes, he achieved audience records with the program Tucker Carlson Tonightalready Fox News.
Tucker was fired from the network in April 2023, after his documentary about the invasion of the Capitol led to a million-dollar lawsuit against the company. The lawsuit was not cited as the official reason. Sources like o Los Angeles Times they also mentioned disagreements with Fox owner Rupert Murdoch due to the presenter’s growing independence and influence.
Controversial interviews
He became famous for interviews with state leaders, being the first Westerner to interview Vladimir Putin after the invasion of Ukraine. He began to make public statements favorable to Putin. His interview with the then President of the Republic of Brazil Jair Bolsonaro, still in Fox Newshad repercussions due to the Brazilian’s statement that he feared that South America would become “all red” with the victory of the PT.
Last year, Carlson interviewed Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian following the exchange of missile attacks between Tel Aviv and Tehran, which laid the foundation for the current conflict. At the time, Pezeshkian classified as “Israel’s intrigue” the accusation that the Persian country had a uranium enrichment program for military purposes. The Iranian was killed in this year’s Israeli and American attacks.
Origins and rupture
Born on May 16, 1969, in San Francisco, California, Carlson was abandoned by his mother and raised far from his father, who had a remiss style, according to biographer Chadwick Moore. Graduated in History from Trinity College, he started working in journalism in the 1990s in media outlets witho New York Magazine and Esquire. In the 2000s, he moved to TV, including CNN and MSNBC, where he began to establish himself as a conservative voice.
In 2010, he founded the website The Daily Callerwhich was called the Huffington Post right-wing. With Trump’s rise in 2016, he became a top presenter, driving the Republican agenda.
Since leaving the Fox NewsCarlson has been distancing himself from the hard core of MAGA. The rupture process intensified after Carlson’s interview with Nick Fuentes, on October 27th.
The interview with the Holocaust denier influencer sparked accusations of anti-Semitism. Aligned with the new right, Carlson called the most conservative wing of the Republican party “mediocre and uncreative”. All this led Trump to declare it persona non grata last week.
