Next week, Fox News presenter Lawrence Jones will occupy the time slot vacated by Tucker Carlson, as the network employs a series of hosts to replace its former highest-rated prime-time host.

Page Six reported that Jones will replace Brian Kilmeade, the first person to anchor “Fox News Tonight” in the absence of Tucker Carlson and with ratings in decline.

Jones, age 30, is the presenter of the Saturday night program “Lawrence Jones Cross Country.”

“It is significant that they have chosen Jones to step up so soon after Tucker’s departure,” a person described as a “media insider” told Page Six.

Jones has not commented on the network’s decision to cast him in a week of prime-time programming.

On Monday, Fox terminated Carlson, who had been with the network since 2009, in a statement that shook the cable news industry to its core.

“Fox News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways,” the network said. “We thank him for his service to the network as a host and prior to that as a contributor.”

The 8 p.m. ET ratings for Fox have plummeted since the announcement.

According to Mediaite, Wednesday’s episode of “Fox News Tonight” was only viewed by approximately one-third of the average audience that Tucker Carlson attracted. Chris Hayes of MSNBC won the hour, while CNN’s Anderson Cooper finished in a distant third place.

On Wednesday, Carlson tweeted a brief video in which he addressed the termination indirectly for the first time since being fired by Fox. In less than 48 hours, more than 22 million people viewed the video.

“Where can you still find Americans saying true things? There aren’t many places left, but there are some, and that’s enough,” Carlson said at the end of the video. “As long as you can hear the words, there is hope. See you soon.”

Good evening pic.twitter.com/SPrsYKWKCE

— Tucker Carlson (@TuckerCarlson) April 27, 2023

Reportedly, Carlson has hired entertainment attorney Bryan Freedman. Don Lemon of CNN also announced on Monday that he had been terminated.

The New York Times reports that Freedman helped Megyn Kelly leave NBC News with $69 million and is currently representing Chris Cuomo in a lawsuit against CNN.