Thread by @kazweida

In our Tuesday thread, we're tackling something that has perplexed the public for years. Why is Tucker Carlson still on the air?

From championing replacement theory to advocating harassing children wearing masks, Carlson feeds dangerous rhetoric to the public.
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(2) If you feel like this is a question we've been asking for YEARS, you're not wrong. Tucker has had so many scandals and calls for boycotts that most of us have lost track.

So why is he still on the air and how does Fox justify keeping him around?

washingtonpost.com/arts-entertain…

(3) Probably the most important thing to recognize is that boycotts of Tucker's advertisers haven't been effective in shutting down his rhetoric for a reason. Even as the show bleeds ad revenue, Fox still benefits from the outrage clicks Tucker generates.

forbes.com/sites/jonathan…

(4) In fact, even after scandal after scandal involving Carlson's less than subtle white supremacy, Fox is still inking new deals to expand Carlson's influence as part of the Fox Nation with specials and podcasts.

They want more Carlson, not less.

deadline.com/2021/02/tucker…

(5) Why? Because they obviously profit from catering to Tucker's fan base. Even when he really steps over the line and gets embroiled in a scandal, they just whisk him away for a few weeks and bring him back later when the outrage meter has cooled off.

deseret.com/entertainment/…

(6) Even recent calls by the ADL for Fox to remove Tucker Carlson from the airwaves have fallen on deaf ears as Lachlan Murdoch remains supportive of the hateful and divisive use of what the ADL referred to as "a foundational theory of white supremacy."

abcnews.go.com/Business/wireS…

(7) It's worth noting that many other countries don't allow content from Fox to poison the public discourse. In most other media landscapes there are actual consequences for trying to profit off lies and misleading the public.

cnn.com/2021/01/16/med…

(8) So we're back to where we started. If boycotts of Tucker Carlson's advertisers or Fox News content aren't effective, what can we do to remove this poison from our public square?

ADL has said the point isn't to bankrupt Fox, but maybe it should be.

vanityfair.com/news/2021/04/i…

(9) Recall Glenn Beck was removed after he became a legal liability. Same with Bill O'Reilly. Fox has a tipping point when it comes to profit if a personality becomes legally toxic.

We have to hit them where it hurts & it's not advertisers. It's lawsuits

poynter.org/newsletters/20…

(10) Thanks for dropping by for our Tuesday thread, suggestion courtesy of @Hhdeutsch . Come back Thursday and we'll do this again.

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