Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect the reaction from Tucker Carlson's team.
The Russian state television network Rossiya 24 posted episodes of a purported new show with U.S. far-right political commentator and conspiracy theorist Tucker Carlson on May 21, but Carlson's team said he had nothing to do with it.
Members of Carlson's team later characterized the reporting as "pure nonsense" in comments to Forbes. Neil Patel, the CEO of the Tucker Carlson Network, wrote on X that the company "has not done any deals with state media in any country."
Carlson, a former host on Fox News, has been criticized for making controversial comments on air and social media, characterized by some as being nativist, racist, and pushing talking points that echo Russian propaganda.
Rossiya 24's website features one of Carlson's previously aired episodes about the dangers of ticks and Lyme disease. It also has other previous episodes from Carlson's online media platform, such as interviews with far-right Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, accessible with Russian dubbing.
Carlson traveled to Moscow in February to interview Russian President Vladimir Putin, becoming the first Western media figure to do so since the beginning of the full-scale war.
The interview was widely panned in the West, as Carlson declined to ask Putin tough questions or follow up on Putin's repeated false claims or justifications for Russia's full-scale war.
George Monastiriakos
(Updated: )
