On Wednesday night, the mild-mannered Don Lemon returned to CNN, where he was ousted last year, to discuss Elon Musk’s sudden firing from his subsequent appearance on “X” just hours after the two agreed to an interview. .
“What drove Musk?” “Outfront” host Erin Burnett asked about the billionaire’s unexpected cancellation of the platform’s “Don Lemon Show.”
“That’s a good question for Elon Musk. Frankly, I don’t know,” said Lemon, wearing thick black-rimmed glasses and a black sweater with a white button-down.
Barnett played a statement from Company X saying it was reserving the right to make decisions about the partnership, and later played a clip of Musk speaking on social media platforms about the importance of free speech.
Lemon, 58, said his interview with Musk, 52, was “tense at times,” but said the CEO’s comments about free speech must be “just a talking point.”
The former CNN anchor expressed surprise that Musk terminated his contract 24 hours after the interview.
“What’s interesting to me is…I never spoke up. I said to him, ‘I think this is important for people to hear,'” Lemon said. “By the end, I could see he was upset. He was uncomfortable.”
Despite Lemon’s calm demeanor, he told Barnett that public squares like the X “should not be privatized” and that free speech is not as important to Musk as it is “to him.” he said.
He told Barnett that he asked Musk whether he had a responsibility to police hate speech about X, to which Musk responded that he had no such responsibility or responsibility to answer the question.
“You don’t have to answer reporters’ questions. Don, the only reason I did this interview is because you use the X platform and you asked for it. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have done this interview. I will not.”
The blunt exchange ended with Lemon asking if he would be criticized if he didn’t answer the question.
“I get criticized all the time, but I don’t have to worry about it,” Musk said.
Other topics of conversation included DEI policies, which Musk has strongly criticized on his platform. CNN did not show any footage of the exchange.
Lemon said he asked the tech mogul whether X has a responsibility to better mitigate harmful theories about race.
Lemon told Burnett that the CEO said the platform does not “amplify” racist ideology.
“There is no accountability,” he added.
Lemon corrected Barnett when he referred to Musk as “boss.”
“First of all, he is not my boss. They are a sales partner and have never had editorial control.”
Another tense exchange occurred when Lemon asked about Musk’s alleged drug use, pointing specifically to his use of ketamine.
Musk said he posted about this because he used the drug to treat depression, and that it would be “consequential” and helpful for others to know.
Lemon also pressed Musk about his recent meeting with Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, to which the billionaire responded that Trump stopped by while Musk was visiting a friend. He said it was a coincidence.
In a quick exchange, Lemon asked if Trump wanted a donation or was asking for money, to which Musk answered no.
“Are you leaning toward anyone?” Lemon asked, wondering if Musk would support Trump.
The CEO said, “I am distancing myself from Mr. Biden.”
lemon shade
Musk canceled “The Don Lemon Show” after sitting down for an interview with a CNN anchor that was supposed to be his first broadcast on the platform, Lemon said early Wednesday.
Lemon was taping a roundtable discussion Friday with the billionaire owners of Company X, SpaceX and Tesla.
“Elon Musk terminated my partnership with Company X,” Lemon said. Statement posted on social media sites.
“The interview he graciously agreed to was open-ended, and my questions were respectful and wide-ranging, covering everything from SpaceX to the presidential election. We had a good conversation. Obviously he felt differently.”
Musk fired back hours after touring a Tesla factory in Germany.
“His approach was basically ‘CNN but on social media,’ and as the fact that CNN is dying shows, that doesn’t work,” Musk posted on X.
“And it lacked authenticity because it was actually just Jeff Zucker speaking through Don, not the real Don Lemon. We welcome you to grow your audience on this platform as well.”
A person familiar with the hour-and-a-half interview also said Lemon appeared to have lost his way without the guidance of former CNN president Zucker.
“He was unsophisticated. He didn’t have a producer in his ear. Jeff Zucker would come in his ear and repeat everything he was told,” a source told the Post. Ta.
Lemon conducted the interview with a skeleton staff, including his fiancee, rather than the large team the former anchor had at CNN, the source added.
“Don was overwhelmed, unprepared and insensitive,” the source said, noting that Lemon did not ask pointed or interesting questions.
“He didn’t ask Musk about[ex-girlfriend]Amber Heard. Elon probably liked it too.”
Lemon’s questions also covered sensitive topics, including Musk’s drug use and the various lawsuits and allegations against him, Deadline reported.
Musk hired Lemon in January as part of an effort to bring leftist voices to the site. He was scheduled to record three 30-minute episodes a week before an apparent rift occurred.
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Deadline reported that Musk’s sudden change in attitude could result in him being sued by Lemon for millions of dollars in damages.
Lemon is also seeking a reported $25 million payment from CNN for his termination.
In a statement, Lemon accused Musk of reneging on his promise to free speech and “promote more diverse voices on our platform.”
Lemon said Musk has his “full support” and has “accepted Elon and his leadership team’s word that…we are interested in working directly with new and diverse voices.” Ta.
“His commitment to a global town square where you can ask any question and share any idea doesn’t seem to include the questions people like me can ask him,” Lemon said. said in a statement.
The first episode was scheduled to stream on X on Monday. Lemon said he will continue to broadcast on YouTube.
“X is a platform that champions free speech and is proud to provide an open environment that welcomes diverse opinions and perspectives,” a post on X’s business account said. The Don Lemon Show believes in providing a platform for creators to expand their work, so we welcome them to publish their content without censorship.
“However, like any company, we reserve the right to make decisions regarding business partnerships, and after careful consideration, X has decided not to enter into a commercial partnership with the show.”
In another video Lemon posted to X, he said: [to] It goes without saying in interviews that Elon Musk calls himself a free speech absolutist. But apparently the absolutism of free speech doesn’t apply to questions about him from people like me. ”
Musk’s alleged drug use was the subject of a recent report in the Wall Street Journal, which cited sources as saying Musk had taken acid, magic mushrooms and ketamine at social events. Ta.
Musk is reportedly microdosing ketamine to treat depression.
Lemon’s short-lived deal with X came just months after he was unceremoniously fired from CNN’s ratings-troubled morning show.
Lemon worked at the station for 17 years, but Zucker’s successor, Chris Licht, was reportedly unhappy with the anchor’s on- and off-screen behavior toward his colleagues.
Lemon took a hiatus last year on CNN This Morning after she said Nikki Haley, who was running for the Republican presidential nomination at the time, was 51 years old and “not in her prime.”
As the Post previously reported, Lemon also had some backstage conflicts with staff and on-air talent, including co-anchor Kaitlyn Collins.
