Tucker Carlson's interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin sparked backlash from conservative radio host and former Fox News contributor Erick Erickson.
Carlson, a former Fox News host who remains a popular figure among conservatives, is set to interview Putin amid his visit to Russia, he confirmed in a post on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday. He said he is interviewing Putin because most Americans "are not informed" about what is happening in Russia and that it's his "duty to inform people."
"Most Americans have no idea why Putin invaded Ukraine or what his goals are now. They've never heard his voice. That's wrong. Americans have a right to know all they can about a war they're implicated in, and we have a right to tell them about it because we are Americans, too," Carlson said in a video posted to X.
Erickson said on X: "It is kinda gross that Tucker is doing this truth-teller thing in Russia. The truth-tellers are all in the Gulag with Evan Gershkovich. The Russians invaded Ukraine and Tucker is talking about that war like the Hamas supporters talk about the Gaza situation."
Gershkovich is a journalist for The Wall Street Journal who was arrested in March 2023 and remains in jail after Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) launched a felony espionage case against him. He could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison if convicted.
Newsweek reached out to Carlson's team for comment via email.
Tensions between the United States and Russia have intensified after Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, which U.S. leaders say was unprovoked. Washington has backed Ukraine, allocating more than $75 billion in aid to the Eastern European country in nearly two years while also issuing sanctions against Russia over the invasion.
Carlson previously said he planned to interview Putin last year but accused the U.S. government of intervening. The conservative figure has been accused of promoting Russian talking points amid the Ukraine war, questioning whether Putin was justifiably the subject of hatred and claiming Ukraine is a "client state of the Biden administration."
His interview with Putin has drawn mixed reactions.
"Tucker Carlson said he would interview Putin soon because 'Americans have no real idea what's happening in Russia and Ukraine.' Yeah, Putin is exactly the person to tell Americans the whole truth about what's really happening in Ukraine and Russia. Incomprehensible," wrote Anton Geraschenko, an adviser to Ukraine's minister of internal affairs, on X.
"Does Tucker really think we journalists haven't been trying to interview President Putin every day since his full scale invasion of Ukraine? It's absurd — we'll continue to ask for an interview, just as we have for years now," said CNN Chief International Anchor Christiane Amanpour.
Meanwhile, some conservatives supported the interview.
"This is what REAL journalism looks like from @TuckerCarlson. And @elonmusk is protecting free speech and free press on this platform by allowing Tucker to interview Vladimir Putin," said Georgia Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene.
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Newsweek is committed to challenging conventional wisdom and finding connections in the search for common ground.
About the writer
Andrew Stanton is a Newsweek weekend reporter based in Maine. His role is reporting on U.S. politics and social issues. ... Read more
