Fox News said on Monday that network veteran Jesse Watters would be the host of a key prime-time slot left vacant by the exit of top-rated host Tucker Carlson. Carlson left the network in April, less than a week after parent company Fox Corp settled a $787.5 million defamation lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems, in which the anchor played a starring role. Watters will move to the 8 p.m. slot, starting July 17, with his opinion program “Jesse Watters Primetime”, which was launched last year as a 7 p.m. show, Fox News said. The Associated Press has the story:
Fox: Jesse Watters replaces Tucker Carlson
Newslooks- (AP)
Jesse Watters will host an opinion show in the time slot formerly occupied by Tucker Carlson, Fox News Channel announced Monday.
Watters will remain a co-host on “The Five,” an evening roundtable discussion show that is hugely popular on the network.
“Jesse Watters Primetime” will begin at 8 p.m. Eastern on July 17 as part of a revamped weekly nighttime lineup on Fox News. Laura Ingraham’s show will air at 7 p.m., with Sean Hannity’s popular program remaining at 9 p.m. Greg Gutfeld’s late-night show will move up to the 10 p.m. hour that was previously Ingraham’s time slot.
Watters’ show previously aired at 7 p.m. Eastern.
The announcement comes roughly two months after Fox News fired Carlson shortly after settling a defamation lawsuit with the voting machine maker Dominion Voting Systems on the eve of trial. The case, which centered on the network’s airing of false claims following the 2020 presidential election, exposed a trove of private messages sent between Fox hosts including Hannity and Carlson in which they criticized peers at the network.
Carlson has since moved his show to Twitter, although Fox is attempting to get him to stop the broadcasts.
“The unique perspectives of Laura Ingraham, Jesse Watters, Sean Hannity, and Greg Gutfeld will ensure our viewers have access to unrivaled coverage from our best-in-class team for years to come,” Fox News CEO Suzanne Scott said in a statement.
