Help keep Salon independent

“Turning up the propaganda hose to full blast”: Carlson attacks Fox News in Bannon interview

Carlson accused the network of trying to force analyst Mark Levin on viewers

National Affairs Fellow

Published

Tucker Carlson speaks at his Live Tour at the Desert Diamond Arena on October 31, 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
Tucker Carlson speaks at his Live Tour at the Desert Diamond Arena on October 31, 2024 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson blasted his former employer on Monday, criticizing their decision to offer a show to broadcaster Mark Levin. 

Speaking to former Trump advisor Steve Bannon on his "Bannon’s War Room" podcast, Carlson said that Levin was "screechy" and "not a calming presence." He suggested that Levin received his position due to pressure from Fox News host Sean Hannity.

"Levin’s the funniest because he’s terrible on TV, and again, I never had any problems with him at Fox. He kind of controls Hannity in this weird way. I never understood what that was about. I never really cared to learn,” Carlson said. "Sean pushed, and they gave him some kind of weekend show that nobody watched.” 

Carlson said that Levin's show was like "listening to your ex-wife scream about alimony payments" and suggested that he's seeing increased airtime because Fox News is trying to lay the groundwork for American intervention in the Israel-Iran conflict.

"What they’re doing is what they always do, which is just turning up the propaganda hose to full blast and just trying to, you know, knock elderly Fox viewers off their feet and make them submit to where you want them to," he said.

On Friday, Carlson accused Levin, Hannity, and Rupert Murdoch of being “warmongers” for pushing President Donald Trump to involve the U.S. in the escalating conflict between Israel and Iran. On Monday, Carlson cautioned the Trump administration against choosing a side. 

"I’m really afraid that my country’s gonna be further weakened by this. I think we’re gonna see the end of the American empire,” he said.

Trump responded to Carlson while speaking to reporters on Monday, calling the former agenda-setter irrelevant. 

"I don’t know what Tucker Carlson is saying," he said. "Let him go get a television network and say it so that people listen."

By Cheyenne McNeill

Cheyenne McNeill is a national affairs fellow at Salon.


Related Topics ------------------------------------------

Related Articles