image of January 6 insurrection overlaid with 'Fox News'

Andrea Austria / Media Matters

Research/Study Research/Study

Fox News personalities have been floating the idea of pardons for January 6 rioters since 2022

In the immediate wake of the attack, Fox News figures harshly condemned the rioters in public and in since-released private messages

Written by Isabella Corrao, Alicia Sadowski & Jane Lee

Published

Fox News personalities have been calling for pardons for January 6 rioters as early as February of 2022, and continue to do so as President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration approaches. Trump first suggested pardons at his rally in January of 2022, officially cementing the idea in March of 2024.

However, in the days after the insurrection occurred, Fox News hosts and guests were calling rioters “extremists,” “lawless,” and “criminal.” Host Greg Gutfeld even claimed that Republicans were outraged by January 6 because they “consistently embrace law and order."

Below are examples of Fox News personalities denouncing January 6, and then advocating pardons for the rioters after Trump suggested it.

  • What Fox News figures said about January 6 at the time

    • Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum said that the “group of people who breached these walls are — that’s a crime." She added: “They’ve committed a crime and they should be prosecuted for it. Eric Trump was tweeting that. You know, other supporters of the president are tweeting that." [Fox News, Your World with Neil Cavuto, 1/6/21]
    • MacCallum: “The people who broke into this building are extremists, and they have perpetrated violence against this building.” [Fox News, The Five, 1/6/21]
    • On his radio show, Fox host Mark Levin said of the protesters, “What they did was criminal.” He said: “I want to know who these people are. I want to know if they’re going to be charged. Because they should be. They broke the law. What they did was criminal. No, it wasn't a constitutional crisis. No, they didn’t stop us from counting electors. But what they did was criminal, lawless, idiotic, moronic.” [Westwood One, The Mark Levin Show, 1/6/21]
    • Host Sean Hannity declared: “Those who truly support President Trump, those that believe they are part of the conservative movement in this country, you do not — we do not support those that commit acts of violence.” He continued, “They — people — we don't believe should be vandalizing our nation's capitol, attacking the brave men and women that keep us safe in law enforcement. They don't storm the Capitol, they don’t place pipe bombs at the RNC or anywhere else. And all of today's perpetrators must be arrested and prosecuted to the full extent of the law." [Fox News, Hannity, 1/6/21]
    • Fox host Laura Ingraham called “those who breached the Capitol Hill security … criminals.” [Fox News, The Ingraham Angle, 1/6/21]
    • Fox host Jesse Watters asserted: “You’re allowed, as a member of the public, to go into the people's house, but you have to go through the front door and you have to pass through a metal detector. You can't smash windows, spray police with chemical agents, assault police officers, loot, and vandalize.” [Fox News, The Five, 1/7/21]
    • Fox host Greg Gutfeld condemned January 6 by glorifying the right’s initial response to January 6: “Republicans are always outraged by bad behavior because they consistently, consistently embrace law and order and condemn the destruction of private and public property. … You will not see Republicans bailing out those who were arrested. See, that is a vital contrast. And Americans know this. Americans do not need lectures from hypocrites in hair and makeup who pick and choose their favorite protesters, right? So, I’m glad that the Democrats are finally outraged by this disgusting behavior. Join the club. I’ve been there for a year. I do not play favorites with mobs." [Fox News, The Five, 1/7/21]
    • MacCallum proclaimed: “The people who broke in and disrupted and vandalized the United States Capitol are being sought by the FBI, as they should be this evening — and both sides, I think, feel strongly about that.” [Fox News, The Story with Martha MacCallum, 1/7/21]
    • Hannity said rioters who “breached the building,” and “committed vandalism” should be “arrested and prosecuted.” [Fox News, Hannity, 1/7/21]
    • Fox host Jeanine Pirro: “The actions at the United States Capitol three days ago were deplorable, reprehensible, outright criminal." [Fox News, Justice with Judge Jeanine, 1/9/21]
    • During the January 6 insurrection, former host Tucker Carlson called Donald Trump a “demonic force” to a Fox News producer. [Media Matters, 3/8/23]
    • On January 6, Ingraham texted then-White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows: “The president needs to tell people in the Capitol to go home. This is hurting all of us. He is destroying his legacy." [Vox, 12/14/21]
    • Fox & Friends host Brian Kilmeade wrote to Meadows: “Please get him on TV. Destroying everything you have accomplished.” [NBC News, 12/13/21]
    • Hannity texted Meadows, asking if Trump can “make a statement, ask people to leave the Capitol?” [Vox, 12/14/21]

  • Trump calling for pardons for January 6 rioters

    • Trump first suggested pardons in January 2022. At his rally in January of 2022, Trump suggested, “If it requires pardons, we will give them pardons.” He followed up on his promises in September, adding that he would also issue an apology to rioters. [Media Matters, 1/31/22; Washington Post, 9/1/22]
    • In 2024, Trump continued to promise pardons to January 6 rioters if elected. On March 11, in a Truth Social post, Trump promised as president he would “Free the January 6 Hostages being wrongfully imprisoned!” [Truth Social, 3/11/24]

  • Fox News hosts and guests supporting pardons for January 6 rioters

    • Sean Hannity defended potential pardons for January 6 rioters. Guest Leo Terrell added that Trump should look at the January 6 insurrectionists’ cases on a “case by case basis.” [Fox News, Hannity, 2/1/22]
    • On his radio show, Hannity again justified Trump’s promise to pardon January 6 rioters: “If you don't prosecute people you have on videotape committing crimes, isn't that ostensibly the same thing as a pardon? Oh, nobody's outraged about that.” [Premiere Radio Networks, The Sean Hannity Show, 2/1/22]
    • Host Mark Levin legitimized Donald Trump’s pardons for January 6 rioters by mentioning those who were pardoned by Jimmy Carter. He complained “President Trump talked about pardoning all of these people, should he become President of the United States, and I heard Lindsey Graham and I heard Susan Collins and I heard the Democrats and I thought, ‘Where the hell were you people when these other people were pardoned?’ I was talking about it, not 1954 per se, but I was talking about it, in the course of my career.” [Fox News, Life, Liberty & Levin, 2/6/22]
    • Fox News guest Mark Penn suggested that Biden “maybe even pardon those people who were non-violent on January 6." [Fox News, The Ingraham Angle, 2/10/22]
    • Jesse Watters justified pardons for some January 6 rioters: “A grandfather wandering peacefully through the Capitol shouldn't be sent to federal prison for three years. We get it, but the president has to be careful here. You can't pardon anybody that committed an act of violence.” [Fox News, Jesse Watters Primetime, 5/11/23]
    • Levin: “You talk about Trump. He's going to pardon January sixers. And there's so many people who really didn't commit any offense of any significant kind.” [Westwood One, The Mark Levin Show, 3/18/24]
    • Frequent Fox News guest and Outkick founder Clay Travis suggested Trump should “pardon every January sixther." [Fox News, Hannity, 11/12/24]
    • Fox personality Tom Shillue said Trump is “going to have to pardon” January 6 rioters. He added that Democrats are “going to try to make a hay out of that.” [Fox News, Gutfeld!, 1/2/25]