Chris Wallace, a former journalist for Fox News, said that his move to CNN was made after he "no longer felt comfortable with the programming" at his former media agency.
The journalist spent nearly two decades of his career at Fox News before shifting in January, a move that many said was a long time coming. Wallace is known to be a down-the-middle outlier at his former network and frequently contradicted ring-wing stars. He is also one of the channel's fiercest defenders, which resulted in disappointment among liberals.
Fox News' Environment
However, the 74-year-old issued a final verdict in December, declining to renew his contract as host of "Fox News Sunday" and transferred to CNN, his former network's rival. Wallace will be starring on CNN's "Who's Talking to Chris Wallace" that will start on Tuesday.
In his first extensive interview since leaving Fox News, Wallace said that he was fine with any type of opinion, whether it was conservative or liberal. However, he said that when people began questioning the truth and facts, such as the winner of the 2020 election and the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill riot, he said it was already unsustainable, as per Deadline.
Wallace's departure from Fox dealt a heavy blow to the agency as its opinion section was becoming more prominent among viewers. The journalist said that before, his work environment was a place where he could feel good working for the network.
He was also asked why he did not leave Fox News earlier if he started to feel that it was unsustainable. Wallace said that he spent the majority of his 2021 looking for a new place where he could do his job properly.
According to The Guardian, the 74-year-old journalist also acknowledged that other people may have drawn the line and left the network earlier compared to him. He said that Fox News may have started changing and shifting course in the last year and a half.
A Shift in Course
Wallace was also eager to explain what CNN had that attracted him to the news network, saying it had a more freewheeling format of streaming TV. The journalist added that he was alarmed by his colleague, Tucker Carlson, and his documentary "Patriot Surge." The show falsely suggested that the Jan. 6 Capitol Hill insurrection was a "false flag operation that aimed to demonize conservatives.
The former Fox host's new show at CNN was inspired by the work of famed interviewers such as Larry King and Charlie Rose. The set of the show only involves the host, Wallace, and his guest sitting on either side of a Plexiglass table. It may be familiar to some because it is a more brightly lit version of Rose's long-running PBS format.
CNN's marketing materials for Wallace include prominent younger hosts such as former NPR host Audie Cornish, the chef Alison Roman, and the actress Eva Longoria. Furthermore, the journalist's new show might complement more millennial-focused fare due to involving personalities of advanced ages of some of the guests, including Star Trek star William Shatner, the New York Times reported.
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