Right Wing Media Performance Art: Could It Be Wearing Thin?

Some observers have expressed optimism that the ousting of the demagogic propagandist Tucker Carlson from Fox News might be a sign of a turning tide. Carlson was a master of phony outrage, whipping up hatred, mounting baseless attacks, reeling off racist rants, and doling out phony stories with affected deep-felt conviction that distinguished his tenure as a Fox TV star. For a large segment of the population, listening to characters like Carlson and his fulminating exemplar, Rush Limbaugh, was intoxicating –- inducing suspension of disbelief in the impoverished minds of millions of followers. Perhaps it is so. Performance art of this kind may be wearing thin.