On Monday night, Tucker Carlson used his highly rated prime time Fox News show to sing Kyle Rittenhouse’s praises even more loudly.
Carlson said of Rittenhouse before airing his interview with him, “During the course of our long chat, Kyle Rittenhouse struck us as bright, decent, sincere, obedient, and hardworking.”
Continuing, Carlson remarked that Rittenhouse is “exactly the kind of person you would want many more of in your country. His political leanings are mild at best. He had no interest in serving as a metaphor. Carlson would later call Rittenhouse a “lovely kid” on the show.
When put in context with Carlson’s prior coverage of the subject, none of it is shocking. However, this demonstrates how the right-wing media establishment, spearheaded by Carlson, is persistently trying to hold up Rittenhouse as an example for the rest of the country.
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Carlson and those Like Him not Only Rationalise the idea of Vigilante Justice, but also Advocate for it.
Several people in the conservative media have spoken out against this. Even though Rittenhouse was found not guilty, “he’s not a hero here,” as Carlson’s Fox News colleague Gillian Turner put it earlier on Monday. There are no winners or heroes, she said. No one, not even Kyle, can take a moment to celebrate.
However, Carlson’s microphone is leagues ahead of what Turner has to offer. As for Carlson’s interview with Rittenhouse, in which the latter (predictably) blasted the media and others, it’s impossible to interpret it as anything other than a victory lap.
Rittenhouse’s attorney, Mark Richards, went on CNN an hour after the interview with the most known right-wing conspiracy theorist in the business aired to paint his client in a different light.
In Conclusion
Chris Cuomo questioned whether Rittenhouse is in league with Carlson, Fox News, and other right-wing media outlets. I don’t think he is,” Richards said in response. I don’t see him as some extreme conservative.
Then, Cuomo questioned Richards about the glorification of Rittenhouse: I asked, “What kind of message do you believe this sends?” Cuomo inquired after hearing that a Republican senator had given Rittenhouse an internship and that several gun stores were running sales in his honour.
When asked, “Does Kyle agree with that?” I don’t think that’s something he promotes,” Richards said in response. To me, it says, “Hey, listen up, you idiots…”
