As Russian state television propagandists salivated over Tucker Carlson’s interview with President Vladimir Putin, the first of Carlson’s falsehoods about his visit to Moscow was punctured, fittingly enough, by Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, who presumably helped arrange the whole strange venture.
Carlson, the conservative former Fox News host with a history of airing bogus “news,” claimed — falsely — that prominent U.S. newspapers and television outlets had refused to interview Putin since his invasion of Ukraine and were ignoring Russia’s perspective. Carlson labeled Western media as “corrupt” and accused them of lies on Tuesday in a video confirming that he was in Moscow for a Q&A with the president.
“Mr. Carlson is wrong,” Peskov said during his daily briefing for reporters. “We receive many requests for interviews with the president.”
Peskov conceded that the Kremlin routinely blocked media interview requests from large Western outlets, but he said it gave Carlson the nod because “his position is different” from the major “Anglo-Saxon media.” (Anglo-Saxon is a common blanket jab at the West even when mostly Americans are involved.)
Carlson’s assertion was astonishing, given that two journalists who are U.S. citizens are now jailed in Russia: Evan Gershkovich, of The Wall Street Journal, who was accused of espionage and seized by Federal Security Service agents last year during a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg, and Alsu Kurmasheva, of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, who has dual U.S. and Russian citizenship and who was arrested in October while visiting Russia from Prague where she had been living.
Carlson was sacked by Fox News last April.
The Kremlin’s decision to allow the interview demonstrated Putin’s interest in building bridges to the disruptive MAGA element of the Republican Party, and it seemed to reflect the Kremlin’s hope that Donald Trump would return to the presidency and that Republicans would continue to block U.S. military aid to Ukraine.
Halting aid from the United States, which is Ukraine’s biggest Western supporter, could provide Russia with a path to victory in the nearly two-year war. Although the war is largely at a stalemate, Ukraine is facing critical shortages of soldiers, ammunition and weapons as it battles a much larger and better-equipped Russian force.
Putin portrays himself as a guardian of traditional conservative values, showing common cause with MAGA conservatives, who have opposed gender-neutral bathrooms. Putin has made repeated, derisive references about the West’s promotion of transgender rights.
Putin’s government also has crushed free speech, banned any public expression LGBTQ+ identity and jailed hundreds of antiwar activists, critics, feminists, lawyers and cultural figures for speaking out.
Tucker Carlson says he will interview Vladimir Putin in Moscow
Pro-Trump Republicans are a natural ally for Putin on LGBTQ issues, but also because the Kremlin has long sought to exploit divisions in American society and to meddle in U.S. politics, including through the use of internet troll farms.
“Carlson is smart and his agenda is clear. He and Putin will work together brilliantly to reinforce the false narrative about Ukraine, weaken Biden, and strengthen Trump,” Janis Kluge, a Berlin-based Russia analyst, wrote about the likely U.S. presidential rematch. “This co-production of theirs may be the most effective and toxic propaganda clip yet created.”
Peskov said the Kremlin prefers Carlson’s to major Western media, which Peskov accused of bias, adding that there was “no benefit” to the Kremlin in giving interviews to established Western news outlets.
Nonetheless, Peskov insisted that Western media were eager to interview his boss. “When it comes to the countries of the collective West, we receive requests from large network media, traditional TV channels and large newspapers, which can in no way boast of trying to at least look impartial in terms of covering what is going on,” Peskov said.
“These are all media outlets that take a one-sided stance,” he added. “Of course, we have no desire to communicate with such media, and there is no benefit in giving them interviews.”
Peskov confirmed that Carlson interviewed Putin in person. Peskov also described Carlson as “pro-American.”
Carlson has often echoed Kremlin propaganda about Russia’s war on Ukraine, by attacking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and opposing U.S. military aid to help Ukraine defend itself.
Carlson, the conservative former Fox News host with a history of airing bogus “news,” claimed — falsely — that prominent U.S. newspapers and television outlets had refused to interview Putin since his invasion of Ukraine and were ignoring Russia’s perspective. Carlson labeled Western media as “corrupt” and accused them of lies on Tuesday in a video confirming that he was in Moscow for a Q&A with the president.
“Mr. Carlson is wrong,” Peskov said during his daily briefing for reporters. “We receive many requests for interviews with the president.”
Peskov conceded that the Kremlin routinely blocked media interview requests from large Western outlets, but he said it gave Carlson the nod because “his position is different” from the major “Anglo-Saxon media.” (Anglo-Saxon is a common blanket jab at the West even when mostly Americans are involved.)
Carlson’s assertion was astonishing, given that two journalists who are U.S. citizens are now jailed in Russia: Evan Gershkovich, of The Wall Street Journal, who was accused of espionage and seized by Federal Security Service agents last year during a reporting trip to Yekaterinburg, and Alsu Kurmasheva, of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, who has dual U.S. and Russian citizenship and who was arrested in October while visiting Russia from Prague where she had been living.
Carlson was sacked by Fox News last April.
The Kremlin’s decision to allow the interview demonstrated Putin’s interest in building bridges to the disruptive MAGA element of the Republican Party, and it seemed to reflect the Kremlin’s hope that Donald Trump would return to the presidency and that Republicans would continue to block U.S. military aid to Ukraine.
Halting aid from the United States, which is Ukraine’s biggest Western supporter, could provide Russia with a path to victory in the nearly two-year war. Although the war is largely at a stalemate, Ukraine is facing critical shortages of soldiers, ammunition and weapons as it battles a much larger and better-equipped Russian force.
Putin portrays himself as a guardian of traditional conservative values, showing common cause with MAGA conservatives, who have opposed gender-neutral bathrooms. Putin has made repeated, derisive references about the West’s promotion of transgender rights.
Putin’s government also has crushed free speech, banned any public expression LGBTQ+ identity and jailed hundreds of antiwar activists, critics, feminists, lawyers and cultural figures for speaking out.
Tucker Carlson says he will interview Vladimir Putin in Moscow
Pro-Trump Republicans are a natural ally for Putin on LGBTQ issues, but also because the Kremlin has long sought to exploit divisions in American society and to meddle in U.S. politics, including through the use of internet troll farms.
“Carlson is smart and his agenda is clear. He and Putin will work together brilliantly to reinforce the false narrative about Ukraine, weaken Biden, and strengthen Trump,” Janis Kluge, a Berlin-based Russia analyst, wrote about the likely U.S. presidential rematch. “This co-production of theirs may be the most effective and toxic propaganda clip yet created.”
Peskov said the Kremlin prefers Carlson’s to major Western media, which Peskov accused of bias, adding that there was “no benefit” to the Kremlin in giving interviews to established Western news outlets.
Nonetheless, Peskov insisted that Western media were eager to interview his boss. “When it comes to the countries of the collective West, we receive requests from large network media, traditional TV channels and large newspapers, which can in no way boast of trying to at least look impartial in terms of covering what is going on,” Peskov said.
“These are all media outlets that take a one-sided stance,” he added. “Of course, we have no desire to communicate with such media, and there is no benefit in giving them interviews.”
Peskov confirmed that Carlson interviewed Putin in person. Peskov also described Carlson as “pro-American.”
Carlson has often echoed Kremlin propaganda about Russia’s war on Ukraine, by attacking Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and opposing U.S. military aid to help Ukraine defend itself.
