President Putin’s two-hour interview to the conservative commentator and former Fox News host earned the 20th spot in the list of the most popular programs in the week from February 24, Russian TV expert Arina Borodina wrote on her Telegram channel, citing Mediascope viewership data.

That was due to being broadcast in a morning slot that usually gets low audiences, Borodina wrote, pointing out that Russia’s most popular Channel One TV aired the interview twice in a row from 7 a.m. Carlson himself released the recording on his website and on the X social media platform during US prime time, which was 2 a.m. in Moscow.

Putin Takes Hard Line on Ukraine in Tucker Carlson Interview

While Russian state-controlled broadcasters enthusiastically promoted the Carlson interview and video clips of his visit to Moscow, Putin himself expressed disappointment in his first encounter with western media since his February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

He complained to a Russian journalist this week that while Carlson had listened patiently to his answers, including a long monologue on his historical view of the conflict that went back to the 9th century, he hadn’t asked tough questions that would have allowed Putin to give equally “sharp” replies.