Business Insider: “Can a cable news host amass such a large influence among conservatives that he becomes too big to cancel? Fox News’ Tucker Carlson has generated massive controversies before – losing as many as 70 advertisers in less than a year – but his Monday night segment on how parents forcing their children to wear masks in public should be reported for ‘child abuse’ seemed to result in a new level of criticism for the host. The network is betting big on Carlson and his crusade against ‘cancel culture’ as a catchall term, adding two streaming shows to his portfolio this year as part of a new deal with the network where he reportedly makes $10 million per year.”
“His 8 p.m. show is the network’s most watched, and the host owns the record for the highest viewership of any cable news show in US history. Carlson has weathered waves of ad boycotts and outrage from various constituencies, mainly over segments promoting – either implicitly or explicitly – white supremacist ideologies such as ‘white replacement theory,’ which he embraced in plain terms on-air earlier this month. What’s new this time is his call to action from his millions of viewers. According to the latest Fox News earning report, revenue from cable fees more than doubled that from advertising, which explains, in part at least, why the successive ad boycotts have not resulted in the network canning Carlson’s primetime show. Unlike advertising revenue, cable fees are more guaranteed and split among channels carried by providers like Comcast or Spectrum. Those proceeds for Fox come from cable subscribers regardless of whether they ever tune in. While cable fees continue to fall as more Americans cut the cord, Carlson is at the center of the network’s streaming strategy with his new talk show ‘Tucker Carlson Today’ and longform documentary series ‘Tucker Carlson Orignals,’ both of which are behind a paywall on the FOX Nation app. Perhaps most importantly, Carlson still has the support of the Murdoch family, which founded and controls Fox News.”