Blake Neff, Tucker Carlson’s Top Writer, Resigns After Extensive Racist, Sexist Online Writings Surface
Blake Neff, the top writer on Tucker Carlson’s Fox News show, has resigned after extensive racist and sexist online writings have surfaced that were reportedly connected back to him.
As CNN Business reported, Neff was a frequent commenter on a website called AudiAdmit, an unmoderated forum for lawyers and law school students that has become known for rampant racism and sexism. The report found a number of comments from Neff denigrating African Americans and Asians. The report noted that Neff also “maintained a lengthy thread in which he has derided a woman and posted information about her dating life that has invited other users to mock her and invade her privacy.”
The report found that Neff used two different usernames on the forum, but other comments on the site reportedly knew that the person behind the account worked on Carlson’s show.
In a statement to The Inquisitr, Fox News said that they had accepted Neff’s resignation. The spokesperson also said racist and homophobic comments by Fox News employees will not be tolerated.
“We want to make abundantly clear that FOX News Media strongly condemns this horrific racist, misogynistic and homophobic behavior. Neff’s abhorrent conduct on this forum was never divulged to the show or the network until Friday, at which point we swiftly accepted his resignation. Make no mistake, actions such as his cannot and will not be tolerated at any time in any part of our work force.”
Carlson will be addressing the situation on Monday night, according to Fox News.
The report noted that Neff had served as Carlson’s top writer for close to four years, and before that was a reporter on the right-leaning news outlet The Daily Caller. Neff was seen as wielding significant influence with Carlson, even bragging that he had control over the entire content of the show. Carlson himself had credited Neff for his intensive contributions to the show.
“Anything [Carlson is] reading off the teleprompter, the first draft was written by me,” Neff said in an interview with Dartmouth Alumni Magazine. “We’re very aware that we do have that power to sway the conversation, so we try to use it responsibly.”
Carlson has come under fire for controversial statements on race, including recent criticism of the Black Lives Matter movement. Carlson claimed that the movement was not really about protecting the lives of Black people, and gave what appeared to be an ominous warning about what he believed were the true intentions of the movement.
“This may be a lot of things, this moment we are living through. But it is definitely not about Black lives, and remember that when they come for you. And at this rate, they will,” he said.
The controversial statement led to critics calling for a boycott, and Carlson lost advertisers as a result.
