The former star presenter of Fox News has just arrived on Twitter, after being fired from the favorite channel of the American far right. His arrival on the social network is indicative of the change in the social network since the takeover by Elon Musk.
” At the most fundamental level, the information you consume is lies. Particularly discreet and insidious lies. Facts were intentionally withheld. You are manipulated. This alarmist message comes from a video, posted on Twitter on May 9, 2023 by Tucker Carlson. In his video, the former star presenter of the American channel Fox News explains his hatred of the media system, denounces his ” corruption », and calls the media « barely concealed propaganda organs. »
Tucker Carlson is not on Twitter by chance: according to him, the platform would be the last platform in the world to respect freedom of expression, and that is why he chose it to present a new version there next of his show. ” Twitter is not a partisan site. Everyone is allowed here, and we think that’s fine. However, the arrival of one of his shows on Twitter is not insignificant, and it is symptomatic of the change in the platform since Elon Musk took power.
Who is Tucker Carlson?
Arrived in 2009 at Fow News, the popular information channel of the American right, Tucker Carlson had become in recent years one of the most popular figures of the American alt-right, but also one of the most controversial. Since 2016, he had hosted his own show, “Tucker Carlson Tonight”, which had become the most popular on Fox News and even on all American television channels, with millions of viewers.
The polemicist was best known for regularly making extremely controversial remarks during his programs, in particular on women and migrants. In 2019, he explained, after a shooting, that white supremacism was “not a problem”, and that migrants made the United States ” poorer and dirtier “.
In 2020, during the Covid crisis, he had repeatedly denied the effectiveness of vaccines, and he had also helped spread the lies about the US election results, explaining that Joe Biden’s victory was due to fraud. . In addition to these shocking statements, Tucker Carlson was also sued for discrimination by one of his former assistants.
Despite all these elements, Tucker Carlson had never been reframed by Fox News. To everyone’s surprise, the latter was however abruptly fired on April 24, 2023. The channel has not yet given official reasons for his dismissal, but it could be in connection with a defamation lawsuit brought against Fox News because of the past statements by Tucker Carlson.
His arrival on Twitter is symptomatic of the change in the platform
For a few weeks, the former presenter had remained silent, but the fact that he announces his big return on Twitter is no coincidence. Since the arrival of Elon Musk at its head, the social network has changed greatly. The billionaire promised the return of “freedom of expression” on the platform, and largely relaxed the rules of moderation, while removing most of the teams responsible for removing the most violent content. It also brought back all the old banned accounts, including that of Donald Trump – a very strong signal for the entire American far right.
In addition to these changes, Elon Musk has made Twitter a paradise for conspirators: by removing the historic blue badge, which allowed to report people whose identity had been verified, the billionaire opened the door wide to extreme speeches. The accounts of highly controversial personalities and conspirators who have paid for a subscription to Twitter Blue are now highlighted by the algorithm, making the platform a very favorable place for the spread of fake news.
In this context, it is easy to understand why Twitter turned out to be Tucker Carlson’s chosen platform. However, Elon Musk did not give him a particularly warm welcome. Beneath the presenter’s video, Elon Musk commented on his post, recalling that Tucker Carlson could be ” fact checked “if he was saying anything” deceivers “. A slight warning that the polemicist will have to respect the rules.
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