A troubling pattern has emerged in the relationship between President Trump and Fox News: the president publicly demands that certain on-air personalities be removed, and the network has shown a willingness to comply. The latest targets are Shannon Bream and Jessica Tarlov, whom Trump attacked in April 2026, but the precedent was set months earlier with the cancellation of Howard Kurtz’s program.
Trump’s Latest Targets: Bream And Tarlov
Trump escalated his pattern of targeting Fox News personalities on April 6, 2026, this time going after Shannon Bream, host of Fox News Sunday, and Jessica Tarlov, co-host of The Five. In a Truth Social post, the president criticized Bream for not “correcting” Democratic Rep. Jake Auchincloss during an interview where the congressman accused Trump of lacking a strategy to end the conflict with Iran.
Trump’s harshest words were directed at Tarlov in a message he addressed “for Fox executives only”: “Take Jessica Tarlov off the air. She is, from her voice, to her lies, and everything else about her, one of the worst personalities on television, a real loser! People cannot stand watching her.”
This wasn’t Trump’s first attempt to get Tarlov removed. During a March 26 phone call into The Five while she was absent, Trump told the hosts he “wasn’t a fan” and accused her of using “fake numbers.” Social media users pushed back on X, with one writing: “She lives rent free in his head.”
The Howard Kurtz Precedent
The attacks on Bream and Tarlov follow a blueprint Trump established with MediaBuzz host Howard Kurtz. In May 2025, the president took to Truth Social to publicly demand Kurtz’s retirement after a specific episode where commentators debated the ousting of then-National Security Adviser Mike Waltz. Enraged that he was only “weakly defended” during the segment, Trump wrote: “It is time for Howie Kurtz to retire!” The president added that the case Kurtz made on his behalf was “so pathetic that it would be a lot better if he didn’t say anything.”
Four months later, Fox officially cancelled MediaBuzz. The network replaced Kurtz’s Sunday morning media affairs program with The Sunday Briefing, a White House-focused show hosted by Fox News correspondents Jacqui Heinrich and Peter Doocy. Fox framed the move as a weekend lineup overhaul, but the timing was difficult to dismiss as a coincidence.
On Sept. 14, 2025, Kurtz, who had hosted the program for more than 12 years, signed off in his final broadcast. He said he was proud the show had been No. 1 every week for a dozen years and thanked Fox for giving him “extraordinary independence.” He remained at the network as a contributor and political analyst.
The End Of Media Criticism On Cable News
The cancellation of MediaBuzz had implications beyond Kurtz’s career. His program was the last regular media criticism show on any major national cable news outlet. CNN had already cancelled Reliable Sources in 2022 as part of broader cost-cutting under Warner Bros. Discovery. With MediaBuzz gone, no major TV news network maintains a dedicated program examining media coverage and accountability.
Whether Fox executives cancelled the show because of Trump’s pressure or despite it, the outcome aligned perfectly with what the president demanded. That dynamic has only intensified in the months since.
The Fox-Trump Revolving Door
Trump’s influence over Fox News becomes clearer when examining the deep personnel pipeline between the network and the White House. By Inauguration Day 2025, Trump had selected at least 19 former Fox News hosts, journalists, and commentators for senior positions in his second term, with seven of those individuals still actively working at Fox when they were tapped. The count had risen to over 20 by mid-2025 — matching the total number of Fox-affiliated appointees across Trump’s entire first four-year term.
Former Fox host Eric Bolling explained the dynamic plainly: “With Fox talent, Trump can simply watch clips for proof of loyalty.” Regarding Trump’s occasional attacks on the network, Bolling called it a management strategy: “He does that to course correct them. And it tends to work.”
What Happens Next
Fox News has not publicly responded to Trump’s demand to remove Tarlov, and as of early May 2026, more than a month after his Truth Social post, both Tarlov and Bream remain in their roles. That leaves open the question of whether the Kurtz playbook will repeat itself, public presidential pressure followed by quiet network compliance months later.
The power dynamic at play is clear. Trump publicly rewards loyalty with administration appointments and punishes perceived disloyalty through social media attacks aimed at ending careers. For Fox News personalities who value independent journalism, or even just the occasional tough question, the message from the White House is unmistakable: fall in line, or become the next name on Trump’s list.