Journalist Don Lemon has sued Elon Musk.
Lemon was a co-host on CNN until he was let go from the network in April 2023, AP News mentioned. After his exit, Lemon was presented an offer from Musk, who acquired X in 2022, to form a partnership that would allow him to host his own show, “The Don Lemon Show.”
According to a new lawsuit, Lemon claimed to be a “top prospect” for Musk who was seeking to onboard “reputable figures” to maintain advertiser interest, per CNBC.
Variety noted the show was intended to allow Lemon to be “bigger, bolder, freer,” and he said it would “be available to everyone, easily, whenever and wherever you want it, streaming on the platforms where conversations are happening. And you’ll find it first on X, the biggest space for free speech in the world. I know now more than ever that we need a place for honest debate and discussion without the hall monitors. This is just the beginning so stay tuned.”
Taping for the show kicked off with Lemon interviewing Musk. However within hours of the taping, Lemon was informed the show would no longer be green lit ahead of its premiere date scheduled for March 18, 2024.
Musk had also taken to X to comment at the time: “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 of course welcome to build their viewership on this platform along with everyone else.”
Also in a statement on X, Lemon shared his response: “We had a good conversation. 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.”
Now, Lemon is moving forward with a lawsuit filed in California’s San Francisco Superior Court claiming Musk and his co-defendants “deliberately misrepresented what they intended to do.”
The lawsuit also claims that Lemon and his show were an opportunity to provide exposure for X, and Musk did not fulfill the expectations around compensation listed in the deal, CNBC reports. In fact, the suit states if Musk “accurately represented” their vision to use Lemon to “rehabilitate Defendants reputation and draw in advertisers to the X platform,” Lemon would not have been interested in moving forward with the partnership.
“You don’t have to be a genius to see the fraud, negligence, and reputational damage here,” Lemon’s attorney, Carney Shegerian, told CNBC. “Don’s a hard-hitting journalist who’s committed to defending his good name. We look forward to our day in court.”
Lemon has also “incurred hundreds of thousands of dollars in expenses” in the process of organizing the show. It was expected that Lemon would receive $1.5 million and financial rewards for a one-year deal. He claims he was “rushed” into agreeing to the deal, although it is not confirmed if a contract was formally signed, notes CNBC.
“To this day, Defendants have not compensated Lemon pursuant to the exclusive partnership deal that Defendants induced Lemon to enter into,” the lawsuit stated.
