While ostensibly running for the 2024 Democratic presidential nomination, Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is spending much of his campaign basking in the doting eyes of right-wing media. Since announcing his candidacy in April, Kennedy has made dozens of friendly appearances on podcasts and TV shows that frequently push conservative values or policies.

Kennedy wasn’t always so well-loved by right-wing media; as a longtime environmentalist, he was once disliked by many conservative pundits. However, during the pandemic his longtime anti-vaccine beliefs gained cultural currency among the right, where he’s increasingly seen as “a man of integrity that fights fluoride and poison shots,” as Infowars’ Alex Jones said during his endorsement of Kennedy’s campaign. 

Now, right-wing media are transparently leveraging Kennedy’s run in a cynical attempt to weaken President Joe Biden’s reelection campaign. Former Trump adviser Steve Bannon promoted Kennedy on his War Room podcast for nearly two years and encouraged him to run as a “chaos agent,” in the words of CBS’ Robert Costa.

Over the past four months, Fox News has hosted Kennedy 13 times, promoting his campaign so heavily that his coverage has eclipsed that of some Republican primary candidates. Similarly, Newsmax invited him on its programs 7 times. He also was interviewed on podcasts from conservative media fixtures like Jordan Peterson and Bari Weiss. (Alongside some more mainstream interviews, Kennedy has also appeared with a number of other media figures who are frequent conduits for right-wing misinformation, such as podcasters Russell Brand and Joe Rogan.)

On the day of his formal announcement, Kennedy appeared on Fox's now-defunct prime-time show Tucker Carlson Tonight, where the host called him “one of the most remarkable people we have met.” Other stops on Kennedy’s right-wing media tour offered similar praise, with hosts saying they’ve “had an evolution” on him and warning conservative audiences that he’ll be smeared and discredited by the media for simply being “somebody that is awake.” 

Below is a timeline of the monthslong effort by right-wing media to elevate Kennedy's candidacy.