Conservative commentator Tucker Carlson is getting his own nightly program on Fox News Channel starting Nov. 14, according to people familiar with the plan.
Carlson is taking over the 7 p.m. Eastern time period long held by Greta Van Susteren, who left earlier this year over a contract dispute. Fox News senior political analyst Brit Hume has filled in since Van Susteren’s departure in early September.
A Fox News spokesperson declined comment when asked about the plan for Carlson on Wednesday. But word that the program is close to a done deal is already making its way around Washington circles.
Carlson will be the first major talent hire since former Fox News chairman Roger Ailes was forced out of the company over sexual harassment allegations.
His new program, which has not yet been titled, is the surest sign that there are no plans to move Fox News away from its effort to court viewers looking for conservative viewpoints.
Carlson is said to be a favorite of Rupert Murdoch, executive chairman of 21st Century Fox, the parent firm of Fox News. Murdoch has taken a hands-on role in running Fox News since the departure of Ailes.
Carlson, 47, is a familiar face to cable news viewers. For years he was a co-host of the CNN debate program “Crossfire,” where he represented conservative viewpoints.
In 2005 he joined MSNBC, which gave him his own nightly program, “Tucker,” which lasted until 2008.
He joined Fox News as a contributor in 2009 and became a co-host on the weekend edition of “Fox & Friends” in 2013. He will be leaving that program for his new nightly show which will be based in Washington.
Carlson is also the founder of The Daily Caller, a conservative news and opinion website. He will likely take a passive ownership role in the operation once he starts his new program.
