Tucker Carlson Joins Elon Musk in Attacking Apple Over Censorship Claims

Tucker Carlson on Tuesday criticized Apple at length on his Fox News show, claiming the company is punishing Twitter for allowing free speech on the platform while at the same time "sucking up to the Communist Party of China."

The Tucker Carlson Tonight segment came after Twitter CEO Elon Musk posted multiple angry tweets about Apple. On Monday, Musk accused Apple of threatening to withhold Twitter from its App Store without explanation, and he also claimed Apple has "mostly stopped advertising on Twitter."

"Do they hate free speech in America?" Musk said of Apple in one message.

Carlson addressed Musk's claims and said the Twitter owner is not the only person from the tech sector making such accusations.

"Several tech developers are coming forward to confirm this is how Apple operates and has for years," Carlson said. "So, when Parler was thrown off of the app store because they allowed Donald Trump to speak, you would think it was an anomaly. It wasn't."

Carlson continued his discussion about Apple by saying the company has shown leniency toward China's government.

"For years the most cynical observers assumed that Big Tech companies like Apple censor speech. Yes, they do, but only in extraordinary circumstances. Oh, no. They do it all the time," he said. "In fact, Apple engages in large-scale secretive censorship. Always and everywhere, Apple helps the Chinese government."

Carlson added that Apple is "preventing American citizens from saying what they believe or getting to the truth about something, while bolstering the power of one of the most repressive governments in the world.

"Apple did the bidding of the Chinese government" this month by disabling AirDrop in China because Chinese iPhone users were using the feature to complain about the Communist Party during recent protests, he said.

By doing this, Carlson said Apple shows it is "now an active collaborator with China's murderous police state. When tanks roll into a Chinese city, Apple is rooting for the tanks."

Carlson went on to play a clip from 2017 of Apple CEO Tim Cook praising China for its work in helping poor citizens and the government's environmental policies.

"Apple has been sucking up to the Communist Party of China for many years," Carlson said.

Carlson further said that Apple showed its loyalty to China by not banning TikTok despite Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Commissioner Brendan Carr warning Apple that the China-based video hosting service was potentially harvesting private user data from Americans.

"Twitter must be silenced because it allows Americans to exercise their birthright, which is free speech—a prerequisite for a free society and a democracy—but TikTok must be protected because the Chinese government uses TikTok as a tool of espionage," Carlson said.

Newsweek reached out to Apple for comment.