Why the dismissal of Tucker Carlson is good for the media landscape
How the network effect could lead to greater diversity in the media landscape
Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s a shame for Tucker Carlson that he got fired. Getting fired is never a great experience. Especially when, as it stands now, it seems that he only found out about it 10 minutes before his next show on 4/24/2013. That means he didn’t even know on the Friday before that it was his last show.
However, I would like to look at the issue from an eagle’s eye perspective. Tucker Carlson is a great presenter who has called attention to injustices and stood up for civil rights. Especially in the recent past, he has not been afraid to speak out very clearly against current events. Not many people have this courage anymore, especially when they are in the spotlight.
For the media landscape, however, I think Tucker’s dismissal is a good thing. Fox News belongs in the ranks of the mainstream media just like all the other channels that are giving us less and less of the truth, or at least do not even try to report neutrally.
Tucker had about 3.5 million viewers. I think those viewers will follow him no matter what he does next. My hope is that he builds something of his own. Free from dictates from big media houses.
The more journalists break free from the chains of large media houses, which increasingly act as an extension of governments, the more difficult it becomes for governments, lobbyists, etc. to influence the media landscape in their favour.
That’s the great thing about the network effect. In the beginning, it was the few media houses that provided a platform for journalists. On this platform, journalists competed for a place on the front page. Now it’s the media houses themselves competing for the front page on platforms like Twitter, YouTube, etc. This will inevitably lead to them having to become more honest and report in a way that users expect. Otherwise, they will disappear from the platforms. This will also inevitably lead to more freedom of expression and neutral reporting.
The problem remains of how to ensure that platforms like Twitter, YouTube, etc. remain neutral and do not censor. This also requires competition or, in the best case, decentralization of the platforms.
To come back to Tucker Carlson — he is just the next to set things in motion for a new free and more diverse media landscape that is once again determined by the audience rather than by the shareholders of the media companies.
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