Tucker Carlson gives wrong # on Crossfire

[Jobber of the Week 0]

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,98360,00.html

 

WASHINGTON — In what could only have been a journalistic blunder, Tucker Carlson, co-host of CNN's "Crossfire," gave out the wrong phone number Thursday when prodded on the show to reveal his home number.

 

Carlson, apparently confused, mistakenly gave out the number of the Washington bureau of Fox News Channel, which received numerous phone calls.

 

Viewers who want to reach Carlson can, in fact, dial the television "personality" at his Virginia home at 703-519-6456.

 

Following a riveting segment on his show about who's most annoying -- telemarketers, lawyers or talk show hosts -- Carlson graciously gave out his phone number to an e-mail writer who said he wanted to direct-market to Carlson some of his "junk in the garage."

 

Carlson praised the writer for his good idea, and co-host Paul Begala, egging him on, dared him to give out his number.

 

"Get out your pen," Carlson said before revealing the main line at Fox News' Washington bureau.

 

"You can reach me there anytime," Carlson said. "That's fine. I have defended telemarketers. Feel free to call me, someone is always there."

 

Fox News, having received numerous phone calls intended for Carlson, feels obligated to get the facts right and is correcting Carlson's error. Carlson's actual home phone number is 703-519-6456.

 

Thursday's hijinks were apparently the work of careful preparation, made evident in a tease before the commercial break in which Begala said: "In our 'Fire Back' segment, we'll find out if Tucker will be hearing a lot more about one of our viewers and what he or she keeps in their garage."

 

Now that viewers have the correct phone number, perhaps Carlson will be hearing a lot more.

 

For the record, talk show hosts ranked third in the 'who's most annoying?' poll. Of course, that could change.

 

FAUX NEWS LOL2028987900!!!!!

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Hmmm, this could mean a number of things:

 

1) Tucker did it on purpose to rile up a rival news channel *must show restraint...*

 

2) Tucker may be moving to a rival news channel because how else would he know that certain news channel's number *must show restraint...*

[Jobber of the Week 0]

Carlson on Crossfire just bitched about this. Saying that maybe he wasn't very funny doing this although he personally thought he was, but his wife and four kids got FOXNEWSLOL@))% people calling them day and night yelling obscenities into the phone. Carville called them dispicable but called Roger Ailes "a good man" and assumed he wasn't responsible for this.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

Heck, if I worked at the FAUX NEWS CHANNEL LOL 2003! I'd be calling the Carlson household screaming at them, too, among other things.

 

Carville calling Ailes a "good man." That has to be sarcasm, right?

 

Good thing Tucker's show is on CNN -- I'm sure not too many people heard the number. If "Crossfire" was on MSNBC, there wouldn't be a story at all...

[Ace309 0]

Best gag ever.

 

And best response.

[NoCalMike 0]

good prank, but still not as epic as death row records giving out Snoop Dogg's phone number to the public.

[Jobber of the Week 0]

CARLSON: OK.

 

Well, on yesterday's program on telemarketing, some of you may have seen it. I jokingly gave out what I said was my home phone number. In fact, it was the main number of the Washington bureau of the Fox News Channel.

 

(LAUGHTER)

 

CARLSON: I thought it was funny. Fox did not think it was funny.

 

(LAUGHTER)

 

CARLSON: Apparently, many of our viewers called that number, hoping to speak to me. Instead, they reached a grouchy Fox switchboard operator.

 

Well, to our viewers, I'm sorry I gave you that bad information, even in jest. Last night, Fox responded by posting on its Web site my unlisted home phone number, the phone number where my wife and four small children often answer the phone, as they did last night, during dinner, when the first of several hundred Fox viewers called to scream obscenities at them into the phone.

 

Fox had every right to be annoyed by what I did, amusing as I thought it was. They had no right to invade my privacy or to enable their followers to threaten my family.

 

(APPLAUSE)

 

CARLSON: And you know what, James?

 

(APPLAUSE)

 

CARVILLE: I say this seriously. You have four children. One of your child is in the third grade, the same classroom as my child. And you know what my definition of an operation that would scare the dickens out of little children and a mother living at home and a lot of times you being out of town?

 

This is a pond scum operation that would do that, that would terrify children, that would put something like that up there for the bunch of nuts that watch that thing to call and harass you.

 

(APPLAUSE)

 

CARVILLE: You pulled a joke. If they want to go adult-to-adult, person-to-person, that's fine. You're big enough to take it. They have no right to be scaring the dickens out of children, out of little children, when their daddy's out of town. And they ought to be ashamed of themselves.

 

CARLSON: OK.

 

CARVILLE: Ashamed of themselves for doing that.

 

(APPLAUSE)

 

CARLSON: Well, thank you, James.

 

Incidentally, we have Roger Ailes' home phone number, but we're not going to give it to you.

 

(CROSSTALK)

 

CARVILLE: No, I wouldn't do that, because Roger Ailes has a small child. He showed me the picture of it. I think Roger Ailes is a good man.

 

CARLSON: OK.

 

CARVILLE: I don't think he was behind this.

 

CARLSON: All right.

[Vyce 0]

Fox had every right to be annoyed by what I did, amusing as I thought it was. They had no right to invade my privacy or to enable their followers to threaten my family.

 

Um, what?

 

Forgive me for being the hardass here, but Carlson pulled a rather nasty little joke - which was funny, I'll give him that - and it backfired on him.

 

Personally, I think he got what he deserved.

 

SHOCKING that Carville would use this as a venue to attack Fox News.

[Art Sandusky 0]

That was pretty funny. I still hold that the best ever was when the White House's phone number was given in a Doonesbury strip in 1987 by Ronald Regan's Max Hedroom equivalent saying it was a number for "rock-solid information on safe sex!" The reprisal for that one was all calls being forwarded to Gary Trudeau's publisher.

 

Both parties got zinged I suppose, and the only thing that hints resentmnet is the quotation marks around "personality."

[Guest Salacious Crumb]

Carlson comes across like a loser here to be honest. It was mildly amusing but he shouldn't whine about getting his own shit thrown back in his face.

[Highland 0]

The dickwads that called the number Carlson gave them dialed with the full intention of threatening him and his family.

[Guest Cerebus]

What's odd is when Dave Barry did this to the Telemartketers, people, including me, thought it was pure comedy.

[Guest Cerebus]

by the way, what exactly are the origins of "FAUX NEWS CHANNEL LOL 2003"?

[Vyce 0]

KKK could probably give you the most accurate answer.

 

I believe it started when several people started what I'm sure they thought was a rather clever euphemism for the Fox News Network, "FAUX NEWS."

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

I sent him a PM explaining its history, or at least my version of it. And that's all that matters...