Fox News has condemned an incident during which a man confronted Tucker Carlson at a Montana fly-fishing store over the weekend and told the prime-time host he was the “worst human being known to man.”
“Ambushing Tucker Carlson while he is in a store with his family is totally inexcusable,” Fox said about the now-viral incident in a statement. “No public figure should be accosted regardless of their political persuasion or beliefs simply due to the intolerance of another point of view.”
The man, Dan Bailey, posted a video of himself confronting the Fox News host at the store in Montana, getting in his face and saying to him “you are the worst human being known to mankind. I want you to know that.”
“I appreciate that,” Carlson responds before looking into the camera being held by another person recording the confrontation and giving a smile.
The Fox host then walks away, with the man briefly following him.
“It’s not everyday you get to tell someone they are the worst person in the world and really mean it!” Bailey said in a social media posting of his video. “What an asshole!”
The store, Dan Bailey’s Outdoor Company, which bears no relation to the man who confronted Carlson, distanced itself from the incident, saying it did not condone the episode.
“On July 23, a well-known television personality, Tucker Carlson, was affronted while shopping at Dan Bailey’s Outdoor Company,” the company said in a statement. “Coincidentally, the person engaging Mr. Carlson was a local resident named Dan Bailey. This person has no affiliation with our business, other than share the same name as our founder, who passed away in 1982. To be clear, we treat every customer equally and respectfully. Our staff was professional and cordial to Mr. Carlson, as we are with all of our customers.”
Carlson regularly makes controversial comments about race relations, crime, voting legislation and other happenings in the news. In April, he told his viewers to “call the police immediately” if they see a child wearing a mask to protect against the coronavirus.
After Bailey’s video went viral on social media, some conservatives came to Carlson’s defense.