Sharing their thoughts. Several famous faces have publicly spoken out about Don Lemon’s departure from CNN.
The journalist, 57, confirmed via Twitter on Monday, April 24, that he was fired from the news network, noting that he was informed of his termination through his agent. “I am stunned. After 17 years at CNN I would have thought that someone in management would have had the decency to tell me directly,” his statement continued. “At no time was I ever given any indication that I would not be able to continue to do the work I have loved at the network.”
Claiming that there “are some larger issues at play” when it comes to his termination, Lemon concluded his message by thanking his CNN colleagues and coworkers, stating, “They are the most talented journalists in the business, and I wish them all the best.”
CNN addressed the Louisiana native’s exit in a statement of their own on Monday, writing: “CNN and Don have parted ways. Don will forever be a part of the CNN family, and we thank him for his contributions over the past 17 years. We wish him well and will be cheering him on in his future endeavors.”
However, the network later called the former CNN This Morning host’s social media message “inaccurate,” stating, “He was offered an opportunity to meet with management but instead released a statement on Twitter.”
Lemon’s CNN firing came two months after he made a sexist remark about 2024 presidential candidate Nikki Haley. While discussing the former United Nations Ambassador’s idea to make politicians over the age of 75 complete “mental competency tests” on a February 2023 episode of CNN This Morning, the anchor remarked, “Nikki Haley is not in her prime, sorry. A woman is considered to be in her prime in her 20s, 30s and maybe her 40s.”
After his cohost Poppy Harlow asked him for clarification, Lemon continued: “If you Google, ‘when is a woman in her prime,’ it’ll say 20s, 30s, and 40s. … I’m not saying I agree with that so I think she has to be careful about saying that [politicians aren’t in their prime].”
Though he later apologized for his comments via Twitter, Haley clapped back at the reporter by responding to his tweet. “To be clear, I am NOT calling for competency tests for Sexist middle-aged CNN anchors; only for people who make our laws and are 75+,” she wrote at the time.
Lemon — who tied the knot with husband Tim Malone in 2017 — was absent from the morning show the following day and returned a few days later upon completing “formal training.” He was also pulled from a Black History Month event he was set to moderate in February and was replaced by real estate broker John Gomes.
Not long before news of Lemon’s CNN departure broke, it was announced that Tucker Carlson was leaving his role as a host at Fox News. “FOX News Media and Tucker Carlson have agreed to part ways,” read an April 2023 statement from the company. “We thank him for his service to the network as a host and prior to that as a contributor.”
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Scroll below to see how celebrities reacted to Lemons’ exit from CNN: