Tucker Carlson says media mogul Lachlan Murdoch tried to recruit him to run for president against Donald Trump in 2024—and promised the full support of the Murdoch media empire to back the bid.
In a recent podcast interview, Carlson claimed that shortly after his ouster from Fox News in April 2023, Lachlan Murdoch approached him with a startling proposition: run against Trump, and Murdoch would mobilize assets like Fox News, The Wall Street Journal, The New York Post, and The Times of London to support the campaign.
“Lachlan Murdoch said [to me], ‘You should run for president, we’ll back you—the whole thing, the whole Fox News apparatus and not just Fox but, you know, Wall Street Journal, New York Post, Times,’ all of their papers,” Carlson alleged. “Absolutely, yeah, we’ll back you.”
The former primetime Fox News host made the claim during a long-form conversation with former Fox anchor Clayton Morris. Carlson was explicit that the offer came after his firing, but while he remained under contract. “I got fired in April of 2023. In May of 2023, they asked me to run for president against Trump and said they would back me,” he said. “Obviously, I’m not running… I would never get elected… plus I like Trump.”
Carlson said the offer was made in person over dinner and insisted it was sincere. “He looked at me… ‘You should run.’ And I was like, I don’t… that’s not my world,” Carlson said. “I sit behind a mic and tell you what I think… It’s all I’m qualified to do.”
The claims come amid ongoing speculation about Carlson’s post-Fox media trajectory and his role in politics. While the Murdoch family has not commented on Carlson’s latest assertions, the episode highlights long-standing tensions between Trump and parts of the media establishment, including the family that owns some of its most influential outlets.
Carlson alleged that Murdoch’s overture was motivated not just by political strategy but by disdain for Trump.
“The Murdochs really hate Trump. Like, there’s no one who hates Trump more than the Murdochs,” Carlson said. He claimed that even during his tenure at Fox, producers resisted featuring Trump on his program. “They wouldn’t allow Trump on my show, period,” he said. “I did an interview… right before I got canned… and boy, they were furious.”
It is impossible to verify whether Carlson’s account is fully accurate. No record of the conversation has emerged, and representatives for Fox News and the Murdoch family did not immediately respond to a request for comment from The Dallas Express.
Still, Carlson’s statements touch a nerve in the ongoing debate over media influence in presidential politics. If true, the offer would suggest that the owners of some of the most powerful media organizations in the country considered deploying those resources to realign the Republican Party against its dominant frontrunner.
For his part, Carlson reiterated that he harbors no political ambitions. “I can’t get elected to anything,” he said. “And I don’t want to be elected to anything. It’s not my world. Zero interest.”
Nevertheless, Carlson’s name has occasionally surfaced as a potential presidential contender in conservative circles, especially after his firing.
The Murdochs had reportedly sought to boost Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis early in the 2024 primary season. However, Trump ultimately secured the Republican nomination with little resistance.
Carlson, who now operates his own independent media platform, has become increasingly vocal about what he sees as ideological inconsistencies and hawkish tendencies in both major parties. In recent weeks, he has criticized Trump’s rhetoric toward Iran, though he maintains a general admiration for the former president. “I always liked the guy a lot and I still do,” Carlson said.