United States: CFWIJ Condemns Tucker Carlson’s Repeated Attempts To Downplay The Harassment Women Journalists Face.
Location: United States, New York
Date: March 11, 2021
Tucker Carlson attempted to underplay the violence that women journalists face by targeting The New York Times reporter, Taylor Lorenz. The day after the International Women’s Day, Loren took to twitter to urge her audience to believe women who come forward with allegations of sexual harassment, citing the emotional toll such experiences has taken on her.
Tucker Carlson, the prime-time Fox News television host, notorious for making light of issues of grave concern by drawing false binaries, mocked the sentiment expressed by Lorenz in her tweet. For Carlson, the concerns Taylor Lorenz was expressing were not worthy enough of attention because they did not register a similar level of oppression as that of Uighur Chinese women. While it is entirely humanly possible to feel genuine concern for two different issues without feeling the need to compare one with the other, Carlson also appears to be unaware of the rampant sexual harassment in the newsrooms of the United States. In the past month, the US registered more cases on sexual harassment of women journalists, than any other country. And while one can argue that the numbers can be tilted because women journalists in other parts of the world simply do not report a complaint, it does not exempt the United States from the very toxic culture of its own journalistic workspaces. In fact, Carlson’s own employer company and Carlson himself have been at the receiving end of criticism for propagating a misogynistic culture in the workplace.
For international women’s day please consider supporting women enduring online harassment. It’s not an exaggeration to say that the harassment and smear campaign I’ve had to endure over the past year has destroyed my life. No one should have to go through this.
— Taylor Lorenz (@TaylorLorenz) March 9, 2021
The New York Times came to the defense of its employee in a supportive statement. Criticizing Carlson’s behaviour, it said, “In a now familiar move, Tucker Carlson opened his show last night by attacking a journalist.” And went on to add that, “It was a calculated and cruel tactic, which he regularly deploys to unleash a wave of harassment and vitriol at his intended target,” it added.
Our response to Tuesday night's "Tucker Carlson Tonight" broadcast. pic.twitter.com/LkvaLjcRl5
— NYTimes Communications (@NYTimesPR) March 10, 2021
In response, Carlson again drew a bizarre comparison, citing that such a response is reserved when a reporter is “kidnapped by Isis in Syria”.
The Coalition For Women In Journalism expresses exasperation at the whataboutery that Carlson regularly demonstrates on his show to downplay serious issues of concern. Carlson’s routine to criticize someone else’s privilege in an effort to disregard their experience, while being the host of a primetime cable news show, and coming from considerable wealth himself is disingenuous at best, vile at worst.
The CFWIJ strongly condemns the police brutality against journalists. We demand the immediate return of the press cards seized from the security forces. Policies to intimidate journalists should be abandoned, and journalism should be practiced under the criteria of freedom of the press.
If you have been harassed or abused in any way, and please report the incident by using the following form.