Fox News commentator Howard Kurtz has intensified his criticism of former President Donald Trump following the failed August 15, 2025, summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska and amid Trump’s recent legal and political controversies. The shift marks a rare break from one of Trump’s most consistent defenders within the Fox News lineup.
During his Media Buzz program shortly after the summit, Kurtz said it was “clear not much was accomplished,” describing the three-hour meeting as producing “no framework, no ceasefire, and no answers for Ukraine.” The event, held at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson in Anchorage, was intended to mark a turning point in the two-year war but ended without progress or a joint press conference. It was the first time Putin had visited the United States in more than a decade.
Kurtz credited Trump for avoiding exaggeration but noted that the summit left the impression of an American concession. He referenced reports suggesting that Trump had backed away from imposing new sanctions and accepted a vague Russian proposal that postponed ceasefire discussions. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky declined to attend the Alaska meeting, maintaining that Kyiv would never surrender the Donbas region. European leaders shared that stance, saying peace could only come through Russian withdrawal.
Two days after the summit, Trump used Truth Social to denounce what he called “fake news attacks,” insisting he had a “great meeting” with Putin and accusing the media of refusing to recognize diplomatic progress. Kurtz responded on air that the post “illustrated the gap between political spin and the facts on the ground.”
In September, Kurtz’s criticism deepened as Trump’s Justice Department secured the indictment of former FBI Director James Comey. Appearing on Fox’s Special Report, Kurtz remarked that the case appeared “completely and totally orchestrated by President Trump.” The statement, widely circulated by other media outlets, was seen as one of his strongest public rebukes of Trump’s conduct since leaving office. Trump responded with a late-night Truth Social post calling Kurtz “a disappointment” and accusing him of repeating “Democrat talking points.”
Days later, Fox News announced that Media Buzz would end later this year as part of a weekend programming overhaul. Kurtz will remain with the network as a contributor but will no longer host his own show. The schedule change followed weeks of tension between Trump and Fox leadership over the network’s coverage of his foreign policy and legal challenges.
On an October 9 Fox News Live panel, Kurtz revisited the Alaska summit after renewed Russian airstrikes killed civilians in eastern Ukraine. He said the event “wasn’t a diplomatic breakthrough but rather a reminder that personal chemistry isn’t policy.” He argued that Trump’s claim of partial progress was “overstated at best” given that Putin continued to escalate attacks within days of returning to Moscow.
Kurtz also addressed Trump’s latest foreign policy claims, including the former president’s assertion that he had helped reduce violence between Israel and Hamas through informal negotiations. Writing in a Fox News opinion column on October 10, Kurtz said Trump “deserves credit for quiet diplomacy” but noted that the achievement was “undermined by his continuing obsession with political retribution.”
Analysts say the evolution of Kurtz’s commentary reflects growing discomfort within conservative media circles over Trump’s behavior and leadership style. Once seen as a careful media watchdog, Kurtz has become increasingly outspoken about what he describes as the dangers of “government by impulse” and the erosion of institutional boundaries under Trump’s leadership.
While stopping short of disavowing Trump, Kurtz now emphasizes the risks of the former president’s approach. He maintains that Trump remains “the dominant figure in Republican politics” but warns that his approach to foreign policy and the press could alienate allies at home and abroad.
As of early October 2025, the Alaska summit remains widely viewed as a diplomatic failure. Russia has resumed bombardments in Ukraine, and peace negotiations have stalled. For Kurtz, who spent a decade defending Trump from what he considered unfair media coverage, the tone of his recent remarks marks a significant turn — one that places him among a shrinking group of Fox News voices willing to publicly challenge the former president’s tactics on both foreign and domestic fronts.
