Journalist and author Chadwick Moore said in a video posted to social media Monday that Tucker Carlson’s ouster last month from Fox News was allegedly part of a settlement agreement the network reached with Dominion Voting Systems days before.
Moore — who was a guest on the final episode of “Tucker Carlson Tonight” on April 21 — has been writing a biography about Carlson over the last year.
Concerning Dominion Moore said: “It has now been reported that his firing was a condition demanded by Dominion as part of the settlement with Fox. Although Dominion has denied this, my sources have intimate knowledge of the situation, and they have assured me, even before this news leaked, that that is in fact the truth.”
“If that is true, it would mean that a small group of people, who have a controlling interest in Dominion, have managed to silence what is arguably the most important and influential conservative voice in the country, possibly until after the next presidential election,” he added.
Carlson shared Moore’s post.
— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) May 22, 2023
Fox News agreed to pay Dominion $787.5 million in a defamation suit claiming that the news outlet’s coverage regarding the use of its voting machines in the 2020 election hurt the company’s reputation in the industry, according to an April 18 story by The Associated Press — just days before Carlson’s final episode.
Dominion had been suing Fox for $1.6 billion.
Fox News announced Carlson’s removal from the air on Monday, April 24.
Variety reported that Carlson spoke with one of Fox Corp.’s eight board members two days later. Carlson was told his firing was a condition of Fox News’ settlement with Dominion, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the conversation.
“The unnamed board member told Carlson that the condition does not appear in any of the settlement’s documents, and instead was a verbal agreement. If Fox didn’t comply, the settlement was off, Carlson was told,” the outlet said.
“Dominion had plenty of leverage given that the $787.5 million deal to settle Dominion’s defamation suit against the network wouldn’t officially close until late-May.”
Variety noted that other Fox News personalities had said more about Dominion’s machines on-air in the aftermath of the 2020 election than Carlson.
“But Dominion was looking for the best way to maim the conservative news network, and forcing Fox News to cut ties with the most-watched personality in cable news would deal a potentially insurmountable blow and lead to a viewer exodus, according to Carlson’s understanding.”
“That condition was intended to hurt Fox, and Tucker is just collateral damage,” a source familiar with the matter said. “Dominion wanted to punish Fox, and it’s working.”
Both Dominion and Fox have denied Carlson’s removal was part of the settlement agreement.
A Fox News spokeswoman called it “categorically false” in a statement to Variety.
Dominion issued a statement to the outlet saying, “As the Fox principals who negotiated the settlement well know, Dominion made no demands about Tucker Carlson’s employment orally or in writing.
“Any claims otherwise are categorically false and a thinly veiled effort to further damage Dominion. Fox should take every effort to stop these lies immediately.”
The Los Angeles Times reported last month, based on unnamed sources, that the decision to fire Carlson came right from Fox Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch.
Part of the reason for the move was that Murdoch was not pleased with Carlson’s coverage of the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol incursion, specifically when he questioned what role federal law enforcement agencies may have played that day.
Moore said in his Monday video, “I’ve also seen the monologue that Tucker planned to deliver on Monday, April 24 before his show was abruptly taken off the air.”
“That monologue dealt with, among other things, investigations around January 6 and particularly Ray Epps, the only person captured on video inciting people to violence at the Capitol that day and allegedly an FBI informant, who still has not been arrested or charged,” he added.
“Ironically a good part of the monologue also dealt with the people and forces that are trying to silence him, like [Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York] and others in government,” Moore said.
In Jan 2022, Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas questioned then-FBI Assistant Executive Director Jill Sanborn regarding whether Epps was an FBI informant and whether the bureau had any informants among the crowd at the Capitol grounds on Jan. 6.
Cruz asked specifically if Epps was “a Fed” to which Sanborn responded, “Sir, I cannot answer that question.”
She gave the same response as to whether the FBI had any agents or informants present, citing not being able to reveal the agency’s sources and methods.
CRUZ: “Did any FBI agents or confidential informants actively participate in the events of January 6th?”
“I can’t answer that.” pic.twitter.com/UgD9mQVLkP
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) January 11, 2022
CBS News reported last month, “If you’re wondering what the FBI has to say about all this — for the past two years it has said nothing. After repeated queries by ’60 Minutes,’ late this past week the Bureau issued this statement: ‘Ray Epps has never been an FBI source or an FBI employee.'”
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.
