Maverick US journalist Tucker Carlson has raised eyebrows after being spotted in Moscow this week, with observers speculating Carlson has arrived to interview Russian President Vladimir Putin.
The popular American commentator has so far remained coy about the reasons for his visit, but he has expressed his willingness to speak with Putin in the past, allegedly making him the target of surveillance from US intelligence agencies. As Russiagaters melt down over the prospect Carlson will undermine US regime propaganda by practicing real journalism, geopolitical analyst and journalist Fiorella Isabel
joined Sputnik’s The Critical Hour program Monday to discuss the situation.
“The United States is involved in every single one of these conflicts,” noted the journalist. “And I think that the aim is to really show what Moscow is like, what the Russian people are like, and give a different perspective.”
Isabel speculated Carlson was indeed likely to speak with Putin while in Moscow, adding “I don't think he would come for anything less.” She also noted that Carlson has previously spoken with other leaders sometimes considered controversial in the United States, such as Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
“But based on Putin's speeches and the things he says that many Western audiences don't get to hear, that will drastically change, I think, a lot of people, or at least impact them in a way, in a time where we're on the brink of a catastrophic nuclear event I think,” she added. “I don't think that's an exaggeration. So I think that's why at this pivotal moment, the powers that be are extremely afraid of this interview, to the point where they're saying that they're going to go after Tucker Carlson in a legal way for simply being here and trying to attempt to do journalism.”
“They have gone so far off from what journalism was supposed to be that they don't recognize that this is actually what you're supposed to do, talk to adversarial figures or people that you may disagree with,” noted the analyst.
Host Garland Nixon noted that demonization of foreign leaders is a traditional tactic of US propaganda as Americans are conditioned to revile figures like President Bashar al-Assad in Syria or President Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela. The “danger” of Carlson’s interview, he noted, is that Putin would be humanized before an American audience.
Co-host Wilmer Leon agreed, arguing that Americans would see that Putin is not “crazy,” “unhinged,” or “evil.”
Isabel noted that Putin has made highly subversive arguments for American audiences, questioning the fairness of US elections and noting that US foreign policy generally remains unchanged as new presidents enter the White House.
“So I think, when Americans would view or hear somebody like Vladimir Putin, especially Americans that haven't actually gotten a chance to listen to any of his speeches, they will be perhaps blown away in the sense that they will [say], 'wow, this guy makes a lot of sense. And he just simply is saying what's on our minds,’” said Isabel.
“And I think that fear is what the West would fear, because they will now see Putin as not only a human being, but also a very intelligent leader that is actually doing what's best for his people. And that is everything that the American public wants.”