Disdain for Carlson’s claims were widespread in media circles.īut Carlson’s concerns appeared to be at least partially corroborated when Axios’ Jonathan Swan reported that “U.S. One might think that journalists would have more interest in finding out whether the NSA was abusing their powers to discredit a journalist than cheering the security state for partisan reasons, but one would be wrong. In a follow-up interview on Fox, Carlson said he was told by a second source that the NSA had discovered his attempts to interview Russian President Vladimir Putin and viewed leaking of that information as potentially damaging to his reputation.Ĭorporate media outlets largely sided with the NSA, mocking Carlson for being conspiratorial and even accusing him of fabricating a story. The NSA then issued a meaningless non-denial denial, insisting that the Fox host “has never been an intelligence target of the Agency.” Even Fox’s critics acknowledge the irrelevance of that claim: there are many ways for the NSA to spy on an American citizen without having them be a formal “target” of the agency.
The scandal began when Carlson announced on his show in late June that he had heard from a source inside the government that the NSA was in possession of his communications, as proven by their knowledge of what he was doing. It is, to put it mildly, difficult to imagine him opening an investigation into frivolous allegations.
A widely respected bureaucrat in Washington, he also previously served as deputy Inspector General in Obama’s Justice Department, and, prior to that, was a federal prosecutor. He was then re-appointed by President Trump in 2018 and the Senate then confirmed him. He was first appointed to this position by President Obama in 2016 but failed to receive Senate confirmation. Storch, is a long-time Executive Branch functionary.
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