American television producer Brian Kilmeade was trolled online after he replaced Tucker Carlson for Monday night's show on Fox News. On April 24, Fox News announced that it had decided to part ways with the 53-year-old in a press release posted on its website.
"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."
The statement added that Carlson's final show aired on April 21 and that his show will be replaced by Fox News Tonight, which will air live at 8 PM/ET and will be helmed by rotating anchors until they zero down on a new host.
Many people were surprised by the news because Carlson's show was often the most-watched on the station. It wasn't clear at first what led to the choice.
During what would have been Carlson's time spot, the new host of Fox News Tonight, Brian Kilmaede, said:
“As you probably have heard, Fox News and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways.”
He then went ahead and wished Tucker the best, before adding that they have been great friends and will always be. However, soon after his segment aired, internet users trolled Fox News for replacing Tucker with Kilmaede, with one even comparing the channel to the now-controversial alcoholic drink, Bud Light.
Twitter reactions on Brian Kilmaede replacing Tucker Carlson
After the news that Carlson had been fired from Fox News and been replaced by Brian Kilmaede went viral, Twitterati were furious. Several users slammed the network for removing Carlson from the prime slot and asked him to boycott Fox. Others said that Kilmaede is too good for the show and that Fox won't survive this fall.
Some users also compared the situation to Bud Light's fall after hiring Dylan Mulvaney as their spokesperson.
Tucker Carlson found out about his termination minutes before it was announced
According to the Wall Street Journal, Tucker learned of his termination 10 minutes before it was made public. The Los Angeles Times reported that Rupert Murdoch, the 92-year-old owner of Fox, and senior Fox officials made the decision to fire Tucker Carlson.
Lachlan Murdoch, the CEO of Fox Corporation and the son of Rupert Murdoch, and Suzanne Scott, the CEO of Fox News, decided to terminate Carlson on Friday night, as per the Washington Post.
The Los Angeles Times reported that it was related to a complaint filed by Abby Grossberg, a former senior booking producer on Carlson's program who claims she encountered unfair treatment and a hostile work environment.
The journalist had recently signed a new contract with Fox News, which included a significant increase in Tucker Carlson's original content for the Fox Nation streaming service.
On Monday night, Carlson was scheduled to speak with Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, whom the network had been pushing earlier in the day. But Kilmeade, a frequent Fox & Friends co-host, ended up doing the interview.
According to Semafor, the executive producer for Carlson, Justin Wells, is also departing the network.