Don Lemon’s new show is too much CNN and not enough X. According to Elon Musk, that is.
On Wednesday, Lemon posted on X (formerly Twitter) that Musk “has canceled the partnership I had with X … he informed me of his decision hours after an interview I conducted with him on Friday.”
The former CNN host interviewed Musk for what was supposed to be the first episode of The Don Lemon Show, slated to debut on X and YouTube, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Lemon said the interview will still be available on YouTube, as will future episodes of his show.
Don Lemon x Elon Musk no more
“There were no restrictions on the interview that he willingly agreed to, and my questions were respectful and wide ranging, covering everything from SpaceX to the presidential election,” Lemon’s statement read.
“We had a good conversation. Clearly he felt differently,” the statement added.
Musk, for his part, responded to a comment on X on why he decided to cancel the show, “His approach was basically just ‘CNN, but on social media’, which doesn’t work, as evidenced by the fact that CNN is dying.”
His post continued, “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 of course welcome to build their viewership on this platform along with everyone else.”
Where does X talk shows go from here?
An X user @brianstelter uploaded a snippet of the interview where Musk told Lemon, “Don, the only reason I’m doing this interview is because you’re on the X platform and you asked for it. Otherwise, I would not do this interview.”
X’s business account also posted a statement that said, “X is a platform that champions free speech, and we’re proud to provide an open environment for diverse voices and perspectives. The Don Lemon Show is welcome to publish its content on X, without censorship, as we believe in providing a platform for creators to scale their work and connect with new communities.”
The social media platform’s statement continued, “However, like any enterprise, we reserve the right to make decisions about our business partnerships, and after careful consideration, X decided not to enter into a commercial partnership with the show.”
The Don Lemon Show was one of the three original shows scheduled to debut on X. This was part of the platform’s push to expand their content partnerships. The other two shows were from former Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard and former Fox Sports host Jim Rome.
Under CEO Linda Yaccarino, X has attempted to offer more videos on its platforms. Aside from talk shows, it signed a 10-show deal with Range Media Partners, as well as a series WWE Speed from the WWE featuring ultra-quick timed matches.
However, this news of Lemon’s show being cut from X does raise questions when it comes to how the company has decided to approach partnerships and free speech.
In Lemon’s statement, he wrote, “While Elon goes back on his word, I will be doubling down, I will be doubling down on my commitment to free speech and I cannot wait to get started.”
Lemon was let go from CNN This Morning almost a year ago. He reportedly received a $24.5 million settlement from the network.
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