HO-LEE-SMOKES.

I mean, this is gobsmacking. As of this morning, Fox announces that they’ve cut Tucker Carlson – host of Tucker Carlson Tonight and the network’s most popular show by a huge margin – loose.

Wall Street isn’t taking the news well.

Appears Fox stock is crashing after announcing Tucker Carlson’s show is over: pic.twitter.com/4V1M3ww7r6

— Henry Rodgers (@henryrodgersdc) April 24, 2023

Can’t imagine why not.

…Carlson’s sudden exit represents a massive change for the dominant network in cable news. For the week ending April 16, Tucker Carlson Tonight was the most-watched show for the week, with a total audience of 3.389 million viewers, and 419,000 viewers in the key demo of adults 25-54. The next highest-rated show was Fox News Channel’s The Five, which had 3.015 million viewers. The Five airs outside prime time, with FNC’s next highest-rated prime time hour after Carlson’s being Hannity, which delivered a total audience of 2.607 million viewers.

The powers that be had Harris Faulkner read a hostage-style video. Ew, awkward. No long, fond farewell for the guy who singlehandedly kept that network afloat after the Arizona call in the election.

His last show? WAS FRIDAY. Tucker is already gone.

Fox News has @HarrisFaulkner make the announcement to viewers at 11:45 a.m. Eastern on The @FaulknerFocus (so 18 minutes after the statement went life) that #Tucker was OUT at the network.

She read the statement in full, adding at the onset "News from within our Fox family." pic.twitter.com/iJMpSSjXkE

— Curtis Houck (@CurtisHouck) April 24, 2023

I mean, as Tucker is the only – ONLY – show we watch on Fox, we were loving the ending of his show Friday night. It was wonderful!

Here was the end of what turned out to be Tucker Carlson's final Fox News show last Friday. Certainly no indication that he didn't expect to be on the air tonight. In fact Tucker's final words are, "we'll be back on Monday." pic.twitter.com/F9R5MpWHDK

— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) April 24, 2023

Was it the Dominion payout/embarrassment? Was it a sense that he was getting too big to handle for the more sensitive new leadership at the helm of the network? Don’t forget Paul Ryan is on that board of corporate directors now, and he hates taking heat for the conservative network.

Read the discovery and there was a strong sense inside Fox that some of the hosts were more powerful than the management and could get away with anything. Something had to happen to reset the balance. "This wouldn't have happened if Roger was there" was a comment so many people…

— Erick Erickson (@EWErickson) April 24, 2023

Did federally protected and “60 Minutes” glorified victim Ray Epps…

Ray Epps has accused Fox News host Tucker Carlson of being “obsessed” with him and said he will go to any lengths to “destroy” his life.

“He’s [Carlson] obsessed with me,” said the man who has found himself at the centre of allegations that he was an instigator during the Jan 6 riots.

“He’s going to any means possible to destroy my life and our lives,” he said in the interview with CBS’s Bill Whitaker on Sunday’s 60 Minutes.

…and/or AOC have anything to do with it?

I guess AOC has more influence than we thought possible. Tucker fired within 24 hours after AOC demands action. 🤔

Fox News fires their most popular show host. https://t.co/OqD8Oo4kwn

— Wall Street Silver (@WallStreetSilv) April 24, 2023

If she did, there’s a whale of a 1st Amendment case there.

Oh, MAN. there are a hundred thousand questions being asked right now, but one thing is certain besides the outrage.

Tucker Carlson will be wildly successful in whatever media empire he decides to set up.

He didn't need Fox News but Fox News certainly needed Tucker Carlson.

The entire media landscape as we know it just changed today.

— Greg Price (@greg_price11) April 24, 2023

As I said, Tucker is the ONLY Fox News network show watched in this household. I’m sure we’re not the only ones.

This is a helluva gamble for them.

And truly awful for those of us who really counted on some unabashed plain speaking in the evening hours.