“DON’T FEED THE BEAST” — Jessica Tarlov Reveals How She Handles Trump’s Attacks on Fox News
“DON’T FEED THE BEAST” — Jessica Tarlov Reveals How She Handles Trump’s Attacks on Fox News
Jessica Tarlov has heard the message before.
Donald Trump criticizes her. Trump calls on Fox News to get rid of her. Viewers on the right complain about her presence on The Five.
And yet, she is still there.
In a new interview, Fox News’ most prominent liberal voice revealed exactly how she deals with the attacks — and why she believes responding too aggressively could actually make the situation worse.
Her strategy is remarkably simple:
Don’t feed the beast.
Tarlov said she does not fear that Trump’s public complaints will cost her job, because she believes Fox News leadership knows exactly who she is and understands the role she plays on the network.
“I know who I am,” Tarlov said.
And that confidence appears to be central to how she has survived one of the most unusual positions in cable news: regularly defending a liberal perspective on a network with a predominantly conservative audience.
TRUMP HAS PUBLICLY CALLED FOR HER TO GO
Tarlov is no stranger to criticism from Trump.
The president has publicly attacked her and, at various points, called on Fox News to remove her from the network. The Guardian described her as one of Trump’s frequent targets, while noting that she recently renewed her Fox News contract.
That combination makes her latest comments especially revealing.
When asked whether Trump's criticism ever makes her worry about her position at Fox, Tarlov's answer was blunt.
No.
She said Fox News chief executive Suzanne Scott and the network’s leadership team know who she is and want her to continue doing what she does.
And then she offered another explanation for why she does not appear particularly concerned about Trump's complaints.
She doesn't believe Trump necessarily expects his demands to result in her firing.
“I DON’T THINK HE THINKS THAT MEANS I’M GOING TO GET FIRED”
Tarlov said she has never personally spoken with Trump.
But she does not believe that a social-media post telling Fox executives to fire her automatically means the network will act on it.
That distinction matters.
From Tarlov’s perspective, Trump can criticize her publicly without that criticism determining her future at Fox.
She also suggested there is little incentive for Fox employees to amplify the conflict by responding directly every time Trump attacks one of its personalities.
Her philosophy?
Don’t give the controversy more oxygen.
Tarlov explained that if people “feed the beast,” the situation can become worse — including potentially making things more difficult for the person being targeted.
That is why she said she does not need colleagues to publicly fight her battles every time Trump attacks her.
She believes her own relationship with Fox leadership is enough.
“MY SKIN IS THICK ENOUGH”
Tarlov acknowledged that she has been handed a difficult role.
She is a Democratic strategist appearing regularly on one of the biggest conservative-leaning cable news programs in the country.
That means disagreement is effectively built into her job description.
But instead of trying to eliminate the criticism, Tarlov appears to have accepted that it comes with the territory.
“My skin is thick enough for this hand that I’ve been dealt,” she said.
That may explain why she has remained remarkably relaxed about Trump's complaints.
Rather than treating every attack as a potential career crisis, she sees it as part of the environment in which she works.
And she believes viewers understand that dynamic, too.
EVEN SOME OF HER FOX COLLEAGUES HAVE DEFENDED HER
Tarlov also revealed that at least one former The Five co-host has spoken positively about her to Trump.
She said Jeanine Pirro had told Trump something along the lines of:
“She’s great.”
That detail gives another glimpse into the complicated relationships behind the scenes at Fox.
Tarlov may be the show's liberal voice, but she says the relationship between the hosts is more nuanced than their on-air political disagreements might suggest.
That chemistry, she argues, is part of what makes The Five work.
WHY VIEWERS KEEP COMING BACK
Tarlov said people she meets in public frequently tell her they enjoy the dynamic on The Five.
She specifically pointed to her relationship with Jesse Watters, describing it as having a sibling-like quality, while also highlighting the pointed back-and-forth between the hosts.
That tension may actually be part of the show's appeal.
Everyone does not agree.
And Tarlov believes audiences can recognize that the arguments are part of the program's identity rather than evidence that the hosts cannot stand one another.
She described herself as the “genuine article,” while saying her conservative co-hosts are genuine in their own right.
The result is a television format built around disagreement.
And for Tarlov, disagreement is not something she necessarily wants to eliminate.
It is the reason she is there.
HER NEW BOOK EXPLAINS THE STRATEGY
The timing of the interview is significant.
Tarlov's new book, I Disagree: Winning Arguments Without Losing Friends, was released September 15.
The book focuses on communicating across political and social divisions, challenging assumptions and learning how to disagree without destroying relationships.
Tarlov has also written about recognizing her own mistakes and confronting the biases that can influence political arguments.
In a Fox News essay promoting the book, she discussed how changing one's mind can be difficult and argued that acknowledging when you're wrong is necessary for deeper conversations.
That philosophy fits closely with the way she describes her experience on The Five.
She is surrounded by people who often disagree with her.
Instead of seeing that as a reason to retreat, she sees disagreement as a form of resistance that forces people to sharpen their arguments.
SO WHAT HAPPENS WHEN TRUMP ATTACKS AGAIN?
Tarlov's answer appears to be: not much.
She does not expect every Trump criticism to become a Fox News personnel decision.
She does not want colleagues creating an even bigger confrontation by rushing to defend her.
And she does not appear interested in allowing Trump's attacks to define her relationship with the network.
Instead, she is betting on something much simpler — that Fox News knows what role she plays, its leadership has chosen to keep her, and the audience has decided whether it wants to keep watching.
For now, that bet has produced a very clear result.
Jessica Tarlov is still on Fox News.
And after years of criticism, she is not talking like someone preparing to leave.
She is talking like someone who has figured out how to live with the noise.
Maybe that is the real lesson behind her “don’t feed the beast” strategy.
May you like
When the attacks keep coming, sometimes the most powerful response is not another attack.
It is simply refusing to let the controversy control you.
