Ex-Fox News Host Gretchen Carlson Hits Former Network for ‘Fake News’ and Letting Trump Push ‘The Big Lie’
Former Fox News mainstay Gretchen Carlson, who was let go by the network before filing a sexual harassment lawsuit in 2016, accused her former TV home of spreading “fake news” on CNN Thursday.
Carlson joined Fox in 2006, and was cohost of Fox & Friends for years before launching The Real Story with Gretchen Carlson in 2013. In July of 2016, she accused network co-founder and CEO Roger Ailes of sexual harassment, a month after her contract was not renewed
She appeared on Democracy in Peril with Jim Acosta on to talk about her former employer, the other Carlson at the network, and how she says both played a part in the Jan. 6 assault on the U.S. Capitol.
Acosta aired a clip of Tucker Carlson questioning why the U.S. is supporting Ukraine, a country he has contended Americans have no allegiance with, amid its ongoing tensions with Russia.
After accusing Fox News of allowing former President Donald Trump and others to push “the big lie” on air, Acosta asked Carlson her thoughts on the state of Fox News.
“Why do you think Tucker does this?” he asked. “And why do the Murdochs allow it? Do they not even care, or is it just about money and ratings do you think?”
She responded:
Ratings, I think, first and foremost. But this is the result of fake news. You know, we’re seeing not only the fallout from fake news during the Trump era, but what happened with the insurrection on Jan. 6. And now it’s moving into other areas, not just news. Now it’s hitting science with vaccines. And now it’s into Cold War politics.
I mean, the idea that we would be talking about whether or not we should support Ukraine or Russia, there wouldn’t be a Republican on the planet that five years ago would have said they would have supported Russia over Ukraine. But this is where we are now. Conservative television news is certainly not the conservative news that was out there even just five years ago.
Acosta asked Carlson if she is surprised that Fox News hosts Sean Hannity and Laura Ingraham sent text messages to former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows during the Capitol riot.
She responded:
Not necessarily. I’m not sure that it doesn’t happen on the other side as well, depending on who happens to be in the office. But I think the bigger story coming out of that is how disingenuous it was to be sending those texts of warning while then going on the air to the American people and doing a complete injustice and disservice by saying something completely opposite, and ginning up this whole reaction that it was just fine and patriotic for people to be there on January 6.
Carlson concluded, “This has morphed into eradicating any other point of view since the Trump era that is not just opinion.”
Watch above via CNN.
CORRECTION: This story has been updated to reflect that Gretchen Carlson accused Ailes of sexual harassment after her contract was not renewed by Fox News. A previous version read as if the former host exited the network amid the allegations.
