TAMPA, Fla. – Tim Burke is described as a left-wing media and political consultant based in Florida. He was taken into custody on Thursday and faces a 14-count federal indictment for crimes related to hacking a “multinational media company based in New York City,” (Fox News) and leaking a portion of what is believed to be then-host Tucker Carlson’s interview with Kanye West that was not meant to be broadcast to the public, The Western Journal reported.
The FBI conducted a nine month investigation, which ultimately led to Burke’s arrest. During the probe agents searched his home in Tampa and collected his phones and computers as evidence, the Tampa Bay Times reported.
The defendant operates Burke Communications, a media and political consulting company. In this role he produces a wide range of video content, including for high-profile media clients such as ESPN and HBO. He previously worked for the left-wing media outlets Deadspin and the Daily Beast, according to the the Tampa Bay Times.
The federal indictment alleges Burke and another person who has not been named used their knowledge of the media world and technology along with the use of “compromised credentials” to illegally access the footage and to leak it to various news organizations.
The clips of West making anti-Semitic comments saturated media outlets, but were not intended to be part of the coverage aired by Carlson and Fox News in October 2022.
Burke is charged with one count of conspiracy, six counts of accessing a protected computer without authorization and seven counts of intercepting or disclosing wire, oral or electronic communications, The Western Journal reported.
Following his arrest, Burke was arraigned Thursday afternoon and released after it was determined that he is not a flight risk.
Burke is married to Tampa City Council member Lynn Hurtak, who was present when the defendant was led into the Tampa federal courtroom in handcuffs.
Apparently displeased that news organizations are using an older image of Burke sporting a shaggy hairdo, he posted a tweet asking them to use a more recent photo.
Through a pair of attorneys last year, Burke denied wrongdoing. He claimed there was no hacking and the digital information he accessed was public and easily accessible to him.
