Fox News’ Murdochs held phone conversations with Zelensky ahead of Tucker Carlson ouster: report

According to Semafor, the elder Murdoch held a call with the Ukrainian leader in March where the two discussed the war in the Eastern European country as well as the anniversary of the deaths of two Fox News journalists outside of Kyiv in March 2022.

A similar conversation took place between Zelensky and the younger Murdoch, Fox Corporation Executive Chairman, on March 15, which was noted in a national broadcast last month.

These phone conversations came weeks before the ouster of Fox News’ biggest star, an outspoken critic of America’s involvement in the war in Ukraine, Tucker Carlson.

One person familiar with the calls told Semafor that Senior Ukrainian officials had raised their objections to Carlson’s coverage of the war to Fox Executives, but Zelensky did not address these objections during the calls.

"Clearly, he spooked a lot of members into not being fully supportive of Ukraine," one senior Republican congressional aide told the outlet. Carlson's ouster, the aide added, "probably reduces the loudest voice out there against US support."

Journalist Glenn Greenwald noted Carlson’s removal and his previous stances against the war.

"This article strongly suggests that the Murdochs talked to Zelensky, and Tucker's opposition to the US proxy war in Ukraine was a major factor in his firing. I'll await confirmation, but one thing is for sure: his removal eliminated the most influential anti-war voice from TV," he wrote on Twitter.

"From the start of Biden's war policy in Ukraine, the establishment wings of both parties were - as usual - in lockstep. Schumer and AOC have the same views as McConnell and Lindsey Graham," Greenwald added. "The only DC opposition came from the populist right, and Tucker was its key media voice."