Tucker Carlson calls reporter 'stupid' after she questions his support of 'Great Replacement' theory

CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA: Tucker Carlson insulted a female reporter by calling her “stupid” and lambasted ABC News during an interaction with reporters at an address he made in Canberra.

The former Fox News host and conservative political commentator derided an Australian Associated Press (AAP) reporter when questioned about his views on 'Great Replacement Theory' on Tuesday, June 25.

The reporter mentioned that Carlson had discussed how white Australians, Americans, and Europeans were being replaced by non-white migrants “4,000 times” on his show, according to DailyMail.

Carlson responded by stating that he had “never said that whites are being replaced, not one time” and that his comments applied to all native-born individuals regardless of race.

“If you think that's racist, that's your problem,” he remarked.

What else did Tucker Carlson say during his interaction with female reporter from AAP?

On the 'Great Replacement Theory,' the 55-year-old said, “It's completely honest and real, not racist or scary, its factually true - it's not a theory it’s a fact.”

Tucker Carlson became irritated when the interviewer connected his presentation of the Great Replacement Theory to a racially motivated mass shooting that killed ten people in Buffalo, New York in 2023.

“Oh God! Come on!” he replied. “How do they get people this stupid in the media? I guess it doesn't pay well.”

“Look, I'm sorry, I've lived among people like you for too long. I don't mean to call you stupid; maybe you're just pretending to be,” he remarked.

“My views are not bigoted against any group; they're honest, they're factual, and that's not hate, that's reality,” Carlson declared, adding. “How dare you try to tie me to some lunatic who murdered people? How dare you actually?”

The reporter pressed on, implying that if Carlson opposed such a mass shooting, he must support gun control.

“What?! I thought it couldn't get dumber but it did,” Carlson responded angrily.

“No, I don't support disarming law-abiding people so they can't defend themselves, so the government has a monopoly on violence,” he claimed. 

“A sovereign person has the right to defend himself and his family, period,” he asserted, adding. “That said, I'm opposed to harming anyone, anyone.”

The reporter asked Tucker Carlson whether he felt a sense of responsibility for hate crimes committed in the United States.

“I'm sorry, I'm trying to be charitable. I was like, maybe you're just pretending to be dumb. Now I don't think it's an act,” he snarked. 

He said, “I got here and the country is so unbelievably beautiful, and the people are so cheerful and funny and cool and smart. I'm like, your media has got to be better than ours.” 

“It can't just be a bunch of castrated robots reading questions from the boss, and then it turns out it's exactly the same. Maybe even a tiny bit dumber,” Carlson remarked. 

Tucker Carlson’s disparaging remarks against the ABC

The far-right US political commentator responded to journalists' questions following a speech he gave at the Australian Freedom Conference, which took place at the Hyatt Hotel in Canberra on Tuesday.

Expressing his opinions, Carlson stated that he “resented” the way media organizations and journalists were currently aligning themselves with governments and powerful entities.

“I find it disgusting actually. It's a perfect inversion of what you're supposed to do,” he said.

“If you're a journalist, your job is to challenge power on behalf of the powerless, it's not to align with the powerful against the powerless,” Carlson asserted.

“And that is precisely what you've done,” he claimed.

The former Fox News host then targeted the ABC and the priorities of its reporting.

“I watched your ABC this morning in my hotel room for about 20 minutes, until I looked around for a vomit bag,” Carlson remarked, adding. “It was one of the most grotesque... I couldn't even believe it was real.”

“I sympathise with you guys who work for these (media) companies which are truly corrupt, and you sort of know that but you don't want to think about it because you've got kids and a mortgage,” he continued. 

“I get it, I've been there,” Carlson told the crowd. 

“But let's just be honest, everyone else knows what it is, everyone else knows how corrupt you are, and so there's a reason they have contempt for you,” he added.

During his current speaking tour in Australia, Tucker Carlson participated in the Australian Freedom Conference at the invitation of mining magnate Clive Palmer.

Notable attendees included former Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce, Coalition senators Matt Canavan and Alex Antic, as well as One Nation's Malcolm Roberts.