Since the start of television news reporting, political stances have become a pinnacle piece of most large-scale news stations. This has led to the segregation of channels and a huge disconnect in the information people receive. Those that listen to a right-sided news channel will receive information in a different light than someone who listens to left-sided news. Reporters have become more carefree with their words, some becoming known for their highly opinionated segments. A prime example of this behavior is Fox News reporter Tucker Carlson. 

Carlson has been exhibiting problematic behavior for years and has managed to evade a plethora of lawsuits during his career. His attitude is antagonistic and harsh when speaking on current events, and he often delivers his segments in a ruthless manner. Rather than partake in informative news reporting, Carlson portrays his opinion in an arrogant and unnecessarily antagonistic way. Many of the lawsuits that have been filed against him are in consequence of his over-emotional and unchecked tangents. With each of these suits, Carlson hides behind the defense of libel, refusing to take accountability for the problems that his words invoke. His claims are disputed regularly, yet the reporter has not been required to claim responsibility for his actions. It is this method of news delivery that creates barriers between the people and causes conflict. The fact that Carlson is allowed to continue this behavior is an injustice to the honor that once came with the journalism industry. 

It is reporters like Carlson that make one question the credibility of news reporting today. It seems that the practice has reached a point of being based more on opinion than fact, or as a method of manipulating the audience to take a certain political stance. This should never have become the motive of large-scale news reporting platforms. News should be delivered objectively, without manipulation, so that people can form their own logical opinions. 

While Carlson is not the only reporter to take on this behavior, he is the first to come to mind when thinking of problematic newspersons. Most recently, Carlson has been ridiculed on social platforms for a segment that entailed his aggressive statements regarding the changes of the M&M’s-brand characters. One must question why Carlson is so intensely bothered by such an unproblematic idea. Brands undergo modernization and changes all the time, and a reporter getting heated over something so insignificant seems silly. When there are other tragedies going on in the world that can be focused on, it does not seem right to spend a segment bashing chocolate-candy characters. 

Carlson is also known for his white supremacist statements and wild arguments that deny the statistics calculated by professionals if the information is not in his favor. For example, Carlson once countered the calculated statistic that suicide rates would decrease detrimentally with firmer gun regulation laws by claiming that the left side is pro-suicide. This argument came from the legalization of physicians-assisted suicide in states such as Maine, which only applies when an individual is terminally ill. In a huge display of disrespect to his guest and the seriousness of suicide, he made sarcastic remarks to make a point. This never should be allowed, and it is a shame that he was allowed to continue without consequence.  

While news platforms do serve the purpose of allowing for the debate of information, there is a line that can be crossed. Guests should still be given a chance to talk and state their opinion. They should not be subject to coming onto a show simply to be torn apart by the host and spoken over the entire time. When this happens, it becomes unbearable, not only to the guest speaker, but also to the audience. It is incredibly hard to retain any information when it is impossible to understand what is being said in the first place. 

Unfortunately, Carlson is only one of the modern-day news reporters to be given a platform to engage in problematic behaviors. People like Carlson should have to take accountability for their words and claims, especially when they can be harmful to society or false. Spreading incorrect news is an indecency to reporting and a strike against the professionalism of the journalism craft. As time goes on, it seems this behavior will only increase, which will eventually lead to news stations losing credibility entirely.