Former CNN anchor Don Lemon revealed Wednesday that his partnership with X owner Elon Musk has ended after conducting an interview with the billionaire.
Lemon explained his interview with Musk, which was recorded on Friday is scheduled to be the premiere episode of his show on X, the Don Lemon Show. However, it was announced on Wednesday that the partnership had been terminated, with Lemon suspecting the sit-down played a role.
“We had a good conversation,” Lemon’s statement read. “Clearly, he felt differently. His commitment to a global town square where all questions can be asked and all ideas can be shared seems not to include questions of him from people like me.”
Musk explained in his statement that he chose to terminate the deal with Lemon because Lemon’s approach to his show was “just ‘CNN, but on social media,’ which doesn’t work.” He also claimed Lemon lacked authenticity, describing him as “just Jeff Zucker talking through Don” instead of “being the real Don Lemon.”
His approach was basically just “CNN, but on social media”, which doesn’t work, as evidenced by the fact that CNN is dying.
And, instead of it being the real Don Lemon, it was really just Jeff Zucker talking through Don, so lacked authenticity.
All this said, Lemon/Zucker are…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 13, 2024
Lemon has also clarified he still intends to upload his interview with Musk, which he will do on YouTube, X, and various podcast websites. He added he is still working on the Don Lemon Show, with his Musk interview being “the first of many episodes.”
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The ex-CNN anchor’s show was meant to be one of 10 shows that X would host in a partnership deal with Range Media Partners, which was unveiled in January. Other shows set to be hosted through this deal include one by Jim Rome, a former Fox Sports host, and another hosted by former Hawaii Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, a former Democrat and 2020 presidential candidate.
The creation of these shows comes after Tucker Carlson, who parted ways with Fox News in April 2023, created his show on X, in which he conducts lengthy interviews with famous people. The show has since been incredibly popular, with Carlson even launching his own streaming platform for it.