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The Tucker Carlson X interview with Donald Trump has garnered unprecedented attention, surpassing the viewership of the Fox-hosted Republican primary debate.

Trump refused an invitation to appear at the official Republican debate on Fox News for an opportunity to sit down with Carlson on the former Fox News host's X show.

Fox immediately declared the debate was “the most-watched, non-sporting event cable telecast of the year.”

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Trump shared an article from the DC Inquirer on Truth Social claiming that the Carlson interview was the most-watched interview ever recorded. And it beat the 1993 Oprah Winfrey interview with Michael Jackson, which reached 62.3 million television viewers.

Coincidently Carlson's X interview with Andrew Tate last month also beat Winfrey’s interview with over 107 million views.

The interview's staggering view counts have sparked discussions about the influence of social media platforms on traditional cable news networks.

Breaking Down the Numbers

Fox announced that nearly 13 million Americans tuned in for the cable network's first Republican debate. And Tucker Carlson's X interview with Donald Trump got 238 million 'views.' With more X users adding to the view count every hour.

 The debate, aired from 9-11 pm ET on Wednesday. Despite this achievement, former Fox anchor Tucker Carlson's interview with Donald Trump on X gained an astonishing 238 million 'views' by 6 pm ET Thursday. 

Donald Trump's absence from the Fox News debate made no difference since the interview with Tucker Carlson on X captured more attention. 

Trump boasted on Truth Social that the interview had surpassed the viewership of iconic moments in television history, such as Oprah Winfrey's 1993 interview with Michael Jackson.

The remarkable success of the Trump interview has reignited debates about the future of traditional cable news networks in the face of competition from social media platforms like X. 

With Fox News attracting 1.1 million daily viewers on average and 2.2 million during prime time, cable networks' viewership is a fraction of social media’s engagement.

Critics argue that X's view metrics may not accurately represent engagement, pointing out the lack of significant interactions such as likes, shares, and comments. It's important to note that the view metrics differ between the platforms, with X counting a view each time a user scrolls past the video.

Viewers on X can contribute multiple views upon rewatching, unlike traditional cable broadcasting. In comparison, Fox News' posts about the debate received significantly lower view counts, highlighting the divergent viewer behavior.

Tucker Carlson X Interview generates revenue

Tucker Carlson's interview has implications beyond viewership numbers. It will potentially impact his earnings. While estimates vary, X's revenue-sharing scheme and advertising deals could significantly boost Carlson's income. 

Tucker was recently fired from Fox. Carlson's Fox show drew about 3.3 million viewers on average.

Carlton’s X show could rake in more than he earned at Fox News. He was reportedly paid more than $20 million per year before he was forced out.

Estimates for how much the X show will earn vary. It's been suggested he could net $4 for every one-thousand-views. That means the Trump interview earned close to $1 million.

The interview's performance could also signal a revival for X, which Elon Musk aims to monetize despite falling advertising revenue. 

Musk bought Twitter for $44 billion last October. And recently rebranded Twitter as  X.

The overwhelming viewership of Donald Trump's interview with Tucker Carlson on X has sent ripples through both traditional media and digital platforms.