Tucker Carlson: A Closer Look At His Life, Career, And Impact

Tucker Carlson's Net Worth and Career Milestones

Let’s talk about Tucker Carlson, a name that has become synonymous with modern political commentary. This American TV personality, author, and media figure has built a net worth of $50 million over the years. Tucker first made waves as a commentator on CNN from 2000 to 2005, but his journey didn’t stop there. He then moved to MSNBC, where he hosted a show from 2005 to 2008. In 2009, he joined Fox News, eventually landing his own nightly talk show, "Tucker Carlson Tonight," in 2016.

However, Tucker's Fox News tenure took an unexpected turn on April 24, 2023, when he was let go. This came just a week after Fox paid a staggering $787.5 million to settle a defamation lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems. The move shocked the media world, and interestingly, Don Lemon from CNN was also fired on the same day—talk about timing!

Even after leaving Fox News, Tucker hasn’t slowed down. Outside of television, he’s the co-founder of The Daily Caller, a right-leaning news site. He's also a published author and columnist. On May 9, 2023, Tucker announced his plans to launch a new show on Twitter, choosing this path over the $25 million he was owed under his Fox News contract. It’s a bold move that shows his commitment to forging his own path in the media landscape.

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Salary & Fox Contract: What’s the Deal?

At the time of his departure from Fox News, Tucker Carlson was making $10 million per year. That’s a pretty impressive figure, but it wasn’t always that way. When he stepped into the prime-time slot previously held by the legendary Bill O’Reilly, his salary jumped from $2 million to $6 million annually. Bill, for reference, was pulling in $25 million a year, so Tucker had big shoes to fill. But here’s the thing—Tucker quickly outperformed Bill in terms of ratings.

In February 2021, Tucker signed a 3-year extension with Fox, which bumped his salary up to $10 million. This deal included a podcast featuring interviews from his show and monthly originals under the banner "Tucker Carlson Originals." Before his firing, Tucker was negotiating a new contract that would have kept him at Fox until 2029. But what happened next?

Well, if Fox wanted to avoid paying Tucker the remainder of his contract, they’d have had to prove he was fired for cause. That would have let them off the hook for the $10 million per year he was owed for another 2-3 years. On the flip side, Fox might have wanted to keep Tucker tied to his contract to prevent him from joining a rival network. If that were the case, Tucker could have continued earning his $10 million per year but wouldn’t have been allowed to appear on other networks or produce specials. He also wouldn’t have been able to publicly criticize his former employer.

But on May 9, 2023, Tucker made his choice. He decided to walk away from his Fox contract, forgoing $25 million in guaranteed earnings to pursue his new venture on Twitter. It’s a bold move, but one that shows Tucker’s determination to chart his own course.

Early Life: Tucker’s Roots

Tucker Carlson was born in San Francisco but grew up mostly in Southern California. His father, Richard Warner Carlson, was a news anchor in LA and served as an ambassador to the Seychelles. Tucker’s childhood wasn’t without its challenges, though. His mother left the family when he was just six years old, and when Tucker was 10, his father remarried Patricia Caroline Swanson. Patricia came from a wealthy family, thanks to her grandfather, Carl A. Swanson, who founded the Swanson frozen foods empire.

Tucker attended Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, where he graduated with a degree in history in 1991. It was during his college years that Tucker began to shape the ideas and perspectives that would later define his career in media.

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Rise to Success: Tucker’s Journey in Journalism

Tucker’s career in journalism began in print, where he worked for publications like Policy Review and the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette. He quickly made a name for himself as a columnist for Reader's Digest and New York Magazine. His writing also appeared in Esquire, The Weekly Standard, The New Republic, The New York Times Magazine, and The Daily Beast.

His TV career kicked off when he became one of the hosts of CNN’s panel discussion show, Crossfire. On this show, Tucker often represented the right-wing viewpoint, and it was during this period that he engaged in a memorable—and contentious—interview with comedian Jon Stewart. Many analysts believe this interview contributed to the show’s cancellation not long after.

Tucker’s career took off when he joined Fox News and eventually took over the slot vacated by Bill O’Reilly. His show, "Tucker Carlson Tonight," quickly became the highest-rated show on Fox News, with an average nightly viewership of 3.4 million. That’s more than the combined viewership of his counterparts on CNN and MSNBC. On April 24, 2023, Tucker shocked the media world by announcing his departure from Fox News, bringing his tenure there to a dramatic end.

Tucker’s Book Deal: A Lucrative Venture

As Tucker’s star rose at Fox News, he also secured a lucrative book deal worth $15 million. This deal covered several books, starting with "Politicians, Partisans, and Parasites: My Adventures in Cable News" in 2003. In 2018, he released "Ship of Fools: How a Selfish Ruling Class Is Bringing America to the Brink of Revolution," and in 2021, "The Long Slide: Thirty Years in American Journalism." These books have provided readers with a glimpse into Tucker’s thoughts and experiences in the world of cable news.

The Daily Caller: Tucker’s Media Venture

In 2010, Tucker co-founded DailyCaller.com with Neil Patel. This right-wing news and opinion platform was positioned as a conservative counterpart to The Huffington Post. In June 2020, Tucker sold his one-third stake in the company to Patel for an undisclosed amount. The Daily Caller remains a significant player in the conservative media landscape.

Personal Life: Tucker’s Family and Controversies

Tucker has been married to Susan Andrews since 1991, and the couple met at St. George School, a boarding high school in Middletown, Rhode Island. Together, they have four children. Interestingly, Tucker is left-handed and dyslexic, which adds another layer to his personal story.

Tucker and his brother, Buckley, have been involved in a long-running lawsuit related to their estranged mother’s estate. Their mother, Lisa Vaughn, was the beneficiary of an oil and gas partnership covering 70,000 acres in central California. Initially, the brothers thought the royalty rights were worth around $125,000, but they later discovered the rights were worth at least $2.5 million. They sued their late mother’s estate, which left them each $1, and the lawsuit remains unresolved as of this writing.

Real Estate: Tucker’s Homes

Tucker and Susan split their time between their homes in Florida and Maine. In 2011, they traded down from a $4 million home to a $2 million home in the Washington D.C. neighborhood of Kent. They sold this house for $2.04 million in November 2017.

In July 2017, they purchased a new home in the same Kent neighborhood for $3.895 million. They listed this home for sale in July 2020 for $3.95 million, and it sold within a month at the asking price. The decision to sell came after a group of protesters came onto their driveway and even rang their doorbell.

In early 2020, Tucker bought a home on Gasparilla Island in Florida for $2.9 million. Later, in mid-2022, they purchased a second home on Gasparilla for $5.5 million. These properties, located side-by-side in the community of Boca Grande, highlight Tucker’s commitment to enjoying life both professionally and personally.