Tucker Carlson used to love Zyn nicotine pouches.
And all because of a dick joke.
This is the greatest day, Carlson said upon seeing the Zyn.
Zyn smokeless nicotine pouch containers for sale in the Brooklyn borough of New York, US, on Tuesday, Feb. 6, 2024.© Shelby Knowles/Bloomberg via Getty Images
Phillip Morris, who manufactures Zyn, didnt appreciate Carlsons joke when.
When Carlson later reached out in an attempt to form a partnership with the tobacco giant, it declined.
Phillip Morris reluctance to be associated with a quack medical claim, even a joking one, is understandable.
Tobacco companies have madeoutrageous claimsabout the medical properties of cigarettes and other nicotine products for decades.
And Phillip Morris has already spent a lot of the last year defending itself from regulators.
Tobacco pouches have been around since the 1970s but didnt take off in the U.S. until the early 2000s.
Zyn hit the market in 2014 and has gained a lot of popularity in the last few years.
The popularity caught the eye of Washington regulators.
In January, Chuck Schumercalled fora federal crackdown on the pouches.
This calls for a Zynsurrection!
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Green, a Republican from Georgia,said in a post on X.
In fact, he decided to launch a competitor.
Im not gonna use that brand anymore.
I mean, I think its fine.
Its good for your girlfriend or whatever but I dont think men should use that brand.
Is Tucker Carlson done with Z**??
But its a grand total of $18,200, hardly the massive amount of cash described by Carlson.
He also started promoting Alp, his newly launched brand of nicotine pouches.
For Carlson, the culture war is big business.
Of course, I wasnt making a medical claim about their product.
I was just joking, hetold the Journal.
Meanwhile, on social media, right-wing drones said they were done with Zyn and pledged to buy Alp.
The group appeared at a Trump Rally in Las Vegas on Sept. 14 and shouted out Zyn.
We need Trump back and we need him back bad, Nelk Boy Kyle Forgeard said.
One more thing…Governor Tim Walz, he put a 95% tax on Zyn.
You gotta get that removed President Trump.
Minnesota imposed a 95% tax on all tobacco-free products containing nicotine in July.
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