Tucker Carlson is leaving Fox News with immediate effect
Fox News has announced that Tucker Carlson will leave the network in a surprising statement this afternoon.
The primetime host has become one of the most watched figures on US television for his devise opinion.
Despite this, the anchor has come under major fire in the past and his departure comes after the recent Dominion lawsuit scandal.
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In a statement on his departure, Fox News thanked Carlson for his contribution to the network but did not disclose why this decision had been made.
The statement read: “Fox News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways. We thank him for his service to the network as a host and prior to that as a contributor.”
It continued, announcing that Carlson had already completed his last show on Friday.
Fox said: "Mr. Carlson’s last program was Friday April 21st. Fox News Tonight will air live at 8pm/ET starting this evening as an interim show helmed by rotating Fox News personalities until a new host is named.”
Whilst many will be waiting to see who replaces the devise host, many viewers will be wondering whether even more anchors will be set to follow as the network recovers from the recent Dominion lawsuit.
Last week, the media group had to pay over $787 million (£631m) in the suit - chasing to settle out of court rather than be involved in a high-profile trial.
Initially, Dominion Voting Systems had tried to sue the corporation for a billion dollars for defamation.
Dominion claimed that Fox knew that then-President Trump's claims of voter fraud were false but continued to report them to boost ratings.
At the time, Carlson had often been involved in this as he spoke about the election on his show, Tucker Carlson Tonight.
Drawing in an average audience of 3.5 million viewers, the show was one of the most watched on the Fox News network.
The host also came under fire for his comments about the January 6 riots.
As Carlson now leaves Fox News, it's unclear whether the network will pay a severance deal.
In 2020, CNN's Brian Stelter alleged the Carlson's salary was close to $10 million (£8.03m) per year.
This was impart to Carlson founding his own conservative news site, The Daily Caller, which also reported his departure.
He's not the only one to have suddenly left the network, as host Dan Bongino also left in recent days.
Topics: Film and TV, US News, Tucker Carlson
Katherine Sidnell