Chris Cuomo Questions Tucker Carlson on Selective Use of Jan. 6 Footage: "You Cherry-Picked That"

In a riveting clash of perspectives, Chris Cuomo, anchor of NewsNation, confronted Tucker Carlson, the erstwhile host of Fox News, regarding his portrayal of the January 6th riots and the utilization of Capitol security footage. This highly anticipated interview, scheduled to premiere this week, marks Carlson's first national news appearance post his departure from Fox News, following the network's settlement with Dominion Voting over defamation.

Cuomo questioned Carlson about his interpretation of the insurrection and criticized his 'cherry-picked' use of Capitol surveillance footage that day, which Speaker Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) had given him exclusive access to. "Your approach, and the approach of other people — ‘Hey this was just, you know, these guys were in the wrong place, the wrong way, but that’s all it was.’ I don’t agree with that," Cuomo remarked. "I think it was a riot. And I think they were way over the line, and I think they were motivated to go over the line in part by the president of the United States," as per Mediaite.

In response, Carlson stated that 'parts of it obviously were a riot,' but he also claimed that the number of federal agents present in the crowd on that particular day was not disclosed. The FBI has flatly denied having anything to do with starting the attack. Cuomo acknowledged that the 'key to understanding' the event was transparency. However, "[Transparency] is the opposite to what we have, and there are thousands of hours of tape and the release of which will not jeopardize the security in the Capitol," Carlson stated. Cuomo responded, "You cherry-picked that tape, by the way." According to Carlson, he 'aired what they sent me.'

Shortly after Fox agreed to pay Dominion Voting Systems $787.5 million to settle a defamation lawsuit related to former President Donald Trump's bogus allegations of 2020 election fraud, Carlson was fired from the network last spring. Following information regarding his involvement in the harassment case against his brother, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo (D), Cuomo was let go by CNN in December 2021. Since then, he's joined the cable news network NewsNation.

NewsNation stated in a press release that 'among other topics,' their debate is going to cover include Carlson's departure from Fox, the backlash he received for his interview with Russian President Vladimir Putin, and January 6. Carlson issued a statement of his own in which he said that the American media does not allow for 'legitimate debates,' but he did not specifically address what Fox had said after he was dismissed. Despite a cease-and-desist letter from Fox accusing him of violating his contract, he went on to launch his own show on X. Carlson established his own streaming network in December of last year.

Cuomo and Carlson discussed the latter's much-discussed encounter with Russian President Vladimir Putin in part. According to the Associated Press, Carlson hardly asked any questions and allowed Putin to speak freely about the history of his nation.