Since leaving Fox News, Tucker Carlson has attracted a new audience via X, formerly Twitter, posting videos interviewing controversial figures and making sensational claims.
This content has not always been truthful. In October, he incorrectly claimed that new evidence had been published showing that George Floyd was not killed by Derek Chauvin.
A new video Carlson posted this week included an interview with Douglass Mackey, a man who Carlson claimed was going to prison for "mocking Hillary Clinton on the internet."
The Claim
A post on X (formerly Twitter) by Tucker Carlson, on November 9, 2023, viewed 4.8 million times, stated: "Ep. 38 The First Amendment is done. Douglass Mackey is about to go to prison for mocking Hillary Clinton on the internet. We talked to him right before his sentencing. Remember as you watch that this could be you."
The post included an interview with Mackey. Carlson claimed that during the 2016 election Mackey "made fun of Hillary Clinton on Twitter and then a few years later found himself the subject of a federal raid, an indictment, and then a conviction."
The Facts
Douglass Mackey was not convicted for "mocking" Hillary Clinton.
As stated by the U.S. Department of Justice in October 2023, Mackey was sentenced "to seven months in prison and fined $15,000 for his role in a conspiracy to interfere with potential voters' right to vote in the 2016 presidential election."
Mackey posted content on what was then Twitter that encouraged others to vote via text, even though it was legally invalid.
"For example, on Nov. 1, 2016, in or around the same time that Mackey was sending tweets suggesting the importance of limiting 'black turnout,' Mackey tweeted an image depicting an African American woman standing in front of an 'African Americans for Hillary' sign," the DOJ release stated.
The ad stated: 'Avoid the Line. Vote from Home,' 'Text 'Hillary' to 59925,' and 'Vote for Hillary and be a part of history.' The fine print at the bottom of the deceptive image stated: 'Must be 18 or older to vote. One vote per person. Must be a legal citizen of the United States. Voting by text not available in Guam, Puerto Rico, Alaska or Hawaii. Paid for by Hillary For President 2016.'
"The tweet included the typed hashtag "#ImWithHer," a slogan frequently used by then-presidential candidate Hillary Clinton. On or about and before Election Day 2016, at least 4,900 unique telephone numbers texted 'Hillary' or some derivative to the 59925 text number, which had been used in multiple deceptive campaign images that Mackey and his co-conspirators tweeted."
A similar message was tweeted several hours later, written in Spanish. Mackey has appealed the case.
The DOJ press release states that the MIT Media Lab ranked Mackey as "as one of the most significant influencers of the then-upcoming presidential election."
While Carlson characterizes the messages as intended to mock Clinton, Mackey was not arrested for making fun of Clinton as Carlson suggests.
Whether or not one agrees with the trial's outcome, Carlson's claim that Mackey was convicted and sentenced simply for making fun of Hillary Clinton is not correct, as Department of Justice releases following his conviction show.
Newsweek has contacted Tucker Carlson via Twitter for comment.
The Ruling
False.
Douglass Mackey was not arrested for mocking Hillary Clinton. He was convicted and sentenced for conspiracy against rights, related to sending "deceptive" campaign messages telling prospective voters that they could vote at home. He was convicted and sentenced for conspiracy against rights. He has appealed the case.
FACT CHECK BY Newsweek's Fact Check team
Uncommon Knowledge
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