Tucker Carlson's response to NYT reporter: 'I told you to fuck off'

Tucker Carlson shared the response he supposedly sent New York Times reporter who asked him for comment on a story that claimed some of Carlson's social content contained misinformation about the election.

Carlson shared screenshots of what appeared to be text messages between him and the reporter on his X account on Monday.

The sender, recorded as “Nico” in Carlson's phone, identified himself as Nico Grant, a technology correspondent for the New York Times.

The original text said he was working on an article about “how political commentators discussed the upcoming election on YouTube,” based on data from Media Matters for America, which describes itself as a “progressive research and information center with comprehensive observation and analysis “Describes and corrects conservative misinformation in the US media.”

According to the text message, the article, scheduled to be published Oct. 29, would say that researchers found Carlson's videos containing misinformation posted on YouTube. It would also include a clip in which Carlson refers to a “clearly stolen” election. The text also sought comment on the monetization of Carlson's YouTube content.

According to the screenshot, Carlson responded: “So The New York Times is working with a left-wing hate group to silence critics of the Democratic Party? Please ask yourself why you are participating. That's why you got into journalism? That’s it.” I hope you’re filled with guilt and self-loathing for texting me like that.

The reply was: “Thank you for your quick reply. Would you like to address any of the points or questions mentioned above?”

Carlson then appeared to respond: “Do I want to participate in your attempt to censor me? No thanks. But I hope you quote what I wrote above and also acknowledge that I told you to fuck off, which I did.” I will now. Thanks.

Currently, the last article on Grant's author page was published on October 15th. Grant doesn't appear to have responded to X.

Newsweek contacted the Tucker Carlson Network press team via email, and Grant and the New York Times Press team emailed for comment. Newsweek also contacted Media Matters for America via email.

Carlson's post on X received over 6 million views and 164,000 likes. This prompted Elon Musk to comment on the post with “Perfect reaction.”

An anchor at Fox News until his firing in April 2023, Carlson began hosting interviews on Musk-owned X, then known as Twitter.

In August 2023, he broadcast a live interview with Donald Trump on Fox News at the same time as the Republican primary debate, but Trump did not want to participate, Reuters reported. In December, he launched his own subscription-based video streaming service, charging $9 per month.

Do you have a story? Newsweek should cover? Do you have any questions about this story? Contact [email protected].