Jonathan Chait: “Carlson’s career defies parody and challenges analysis because it has always been laid bare. Carlson inherited the fake-populist shtick used by O’Reilly and honed it into something like performance art. He ranted conspiratorially about ‘them,’ laying sinister plots in their opulent lairs, against ‘us.’ The Carlson version of the character was a campy, scenery-chewing performer who exceeded O’Reilly in every way.”
“The high-pitched squeals and goofy facial expressions were the superficial expressions. The deeper and more sinister aspect of Carlson’s success was his realization that his audience craved racist and nativist resentment in higher doses than his predecessor had been able to supply.”
