Fox Corp (FOXA) shares moved lower Monday after one of its most-recognized personalities, Tucker Carlson, opted to leave the media group after fronting one of its most successful programs for more than a decade.
Carlson, who hosted Tucker Carlson Tonight, "agreed to part ways" with Fox New Media, the company said in a brief statement, adding that his final broadcast was Friday April 21st.
"We thank him for his service to the networks as a host and prior to that as a contributor," the statement added. Recent Nielsen ratings indicate Carlson's show had more than twice the viewership of CNN's Anderson Cooper or MSNBC's Chris Hayes in the 8:00 pm Eastern time slot.
Carlson's departure comes just days after Fox News Media paid $787.5 billion to settle a defamation suit brought by Dominion Voting Systems, which alleged the broadcaster had deliberately spread misinformation that linked the voting machines and technology company to false election-rigging claims made by prominent Republican lawmakers, including President Donald Trump.
In a statement following the Dominion deal, Fox said that "we acknowledge the Court's rulings finding certain claims about Dominion to be false", adding that the settlement "reflects FOX's continued commitment to the highest journalistic standards."
Depositions in the case, however, unearthed a series of private communications between Carlson and his colleagues, one of which indicating that the presenter "passionately" hated the former President.
Carlson, 53, added that he and his colleagues were "very, very close to being able to ignore Trump most nights", adding that "I truly can't wait." He interviewed the former President earlier this month.
Two years ago, a federal judge in the Southern District of New York, Mary Kay Vyskocil, noted in a case involving accusations of slander against the prime-time host that the "general tenor of the show should then inform a viewer that [Carlson] is not 'stating actual facts' about the topics he discusses and is instead engaging in 'exaggeration' and 'non-literal commentary.' "
Fox Corp shares were marked 3.1% lower in early afternoon trading Monday to change hands at $32.55 each, a move that would trim the stock's year-to-date gain to around 7.2%.
Earlier this year, billionaire Rupert Murdoch scrapped plans to merge Fox Corp and News Corp (NWS), the two media empires he controls with his son, following criticism from key shareholders.
Murdoch, 91, who along with his son Lachlan has effective control over Fox, said in October that the two media groups have formed 'special committees' to "thoroughly evaluate a potential combination". Key shareholders pushed back against the deal, however, compelling the
The Murdoch Family Trust had said it would only support the tie-up if it was approved by a "majority vote of the shares held by non-affiliated stockholders entitled to vote."
Murdoch said in a late January Securities and Exchange Commission filing that "he and Lachlan K. Murdoch have determined that a combination is not optimal for the shareholders of FOX and News Corp at this time."
