Former Fox News host Tucker Carlson said he “honestly” doesn’t know why his former network “fired” him in April.
Carlson, who is currently eight episodes into his Twitter show about a month old, opened up about his sudden departure from Fox while speaking with actor and podcast host Russell Brand.
Carlson who admitted his past departures from major news networks said he was surprised and doesn’t expect to be fired from Fox News earlier this year.
“So I was shocked, but I wasn’t really shocked. And I wasn’t angry. It’s not my company and if you work for someone else, that person reserves the right and actually has the inherent right to decide whether or not you work there,” Carlson said.
“I don’t know why I got fired, really. I’m not mad about it. Believe me or not, but I think you can sense I’m not.”
Carlson, who added that he wishes Fox well, took aim at the New York Times afterward details a text message titled “White men fight.” He reportedly sent a text message to one of his producers, which allegedly caused “panic” among Fox bosses.
“There were, you know, ugly leaks like ‘I’m a racist’ or whatever — they leaked it, someone there leaked it to the New York Times,” Carlson told Brand.
“But that’s not true, and I think the people who run the company know that’s not true. Actually, I don’t think they did. And I’m not mad about it. And I was happy.”
HuffPost has reached out to Fox regarding Carlson’s comments.
Carlson’s comments come less than a month after his former broadcaster reportedly sent him a cease and desist letter regarding his new Twitter show, which Fox says is in breach of a contract with him that is said to expire in 2025.
The network has since fired several of Carlson’s former employees and named Jesse Watters as the personality set to permanently replace the former host’s prime-time slot later this month.