FACT CHECK: Was Tucker Carlson Pictured Smiling While Holding A Newspaper Reporting On The Buffalo Supermarket Shooting?

An image shared on Facebook purportedly shows conservative TV host Tucker Carlson smiling while holding a newspaper article reporting on a recent shooting in Buffalo, New York. 

Verdict: False

The photo is digitally altered. The unedited picture can be found on Carlson’s verified Twitter account.

Fact Check:

A gunman shot and killed 10 people and injured three others at a Tops supermarket in Buffalo, New York in what authorities believed to be a “racially motivated” attack, according to Reuters. Carlson, an anchor at Fox News, has since faced criticism for allegedly promoting the “great replacement theory,” a conspiracy theory the alleged shooter reportedly espoused, NBC News reported.

Now, a photo shared on Facebook appears to show Carlson smiling as he holds up a copy of the New York newspaper The Buffalo News with a front page story about the mass shooting. “‘Pure evil’: Racial motive cited as 10 are slain at Buffalo market,” reads the headline of the front page story. (RELATED: Did A 1927 Newspaper Article Report That Five Billionaires Bought The US?)

The photo is digitally altered. The unedited version was posted to Carlson’s verified Twitter account May 1, weeks before the shooting in Buffalo.

pic.twitter.com/FJ76ULBSBG

— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) May 1, 2022

The original image shows Carlson grinning as he holds up a newspaper from The New York Times. “American Nationalist: How Tucker Carlson Stoked White Fear To Conquer Cable News,” reads a headline on the paper’s front page. 

Carlson spoke about the shooting on his show shortly after it occurred, calling the suspected shooter “mentally ill” and the manifesto he left behind “crazy.”

DISCLOSURE: Tucker Carlson co-founded Check Your Fact’s parent company, The Daily Caller. 

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