Sean JamesMay 9th, 2026, 5:04 pm

Ben Shapiro took a few not-so-veiled shots at Tucker Carlson and Candace Owens while addressing the recent layoffs that hit The Daily Wire, the right-wing media outlet he co-founded and continues to make shows for.

Shapiro told The Washington Post on Saturday he would rather fail doing it his way than pushing some of the content Carlson and Owens are now known for.

“While much of the rest of the ‘conservative movement’ decided it was a good idea to clickwhore by embracing radical Islam, theorizing about the evils of Winston Churchill, extolling the wonders of Russian supermarkets, and mocking the widow of Charlie Kirk … we decided not to do those things,” Shapiro said. “If that’s a strategic business failure, then I guess we can live with that.”

He was obviously referring to Carlson on a few points there, including him bashing Churchill and a report where the ex-Fox News star giddily praised a loaf of bread at a Russian market. More recently, Megyn Kelly told Carlson last week he has been getting more Muslim viewers because he goes against the “Israel First Crowd” who demand pundits “hate Muslims.”

As for Owens, she has peddled several conspiracy theories about the murder of Charlie Kirk.

The WaPo story comes after The Daily Wire layoffs earlier this month; a company spokesperson told WaPo it cut 13% of its staff and had more than 200 remaining employees. The report said the Nashville-based outlet made some bets on kids content that did not pay off, and that Shapiro’s show has seen a 70% drop in views since December 2024. It also noted Shapiro has remained a vocal supporter of Israel, which has set him apart from other talking heads, including Carlson.

Despite the recent issues, Shapiro said his company is “not going anywhere.”

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