Former President Donald Trump and former Fox News host Tucker Carlson recently had a sit-down interview at Trump’s Bedminster, N.J., club. The two men, who had a tumultuous relationship in the past, set aside their differences to take on Fox News.
Trump’s interview with Carlson allows him to steal the spotlight away from other Republican candidates vying for the presidency, as he chooses not to participate in the first Republican presidential debate of the 2024 campaign. It also serves as a jab at Fox News, a network that helped build his political career but has been exploring alternative Republican candidates to back in the primary.
For Carlson, the interview with Trump could potentially boost his efforts to rebuild his audience on X, a social media platform formerly known as Twitter. Carlson’s show on Fox was abruptly canceled following the network’s settlement with Dominion Voting Systems, and he is seeking to find new avenues to reach his audience.
The interview almost didn’t happen due to scheduling conflicts, but Carlson’s team decided to record it before his trip to Europe. Carlson has been working closely with X owner Elon Musk to make his content more accessible on the platform, including allowing X videos to be played on television sets using Apple’s Airplay feature.
It was initially kept a secret that Trump had taped the interview, as his team wanted to keep the option open for him to still attend the Fox debate. Trump didn’t want the interview to appear on X because it competes with his own social media network, Truth Social.
Despite their past differences, Carlson has been one of the few Fox hosts who has been critical of Trump, and Trump has accepted this criticism more readily from him. Both men are aligned in their “America First” rhetoric and concerns about immigration.
Overall, the interview between Trump and Carlson is a significant moment in their respective careers and highlights their ability to put aside personal animosity for political and professional gains.