Don Lemon Stated That Elon Musk Ended His Agreement With X Following Their Interview

In a surprising turn of events, Don Lemon, the former CNN anchor, revealed on Wednesday that Elon Musk had unexpectedly pulled out of an agreement to exclusively host Lemon's new talk show on X, as Mediaite reported. Lemon took to Instagram to share the news, shedding light on the abrupt cancellation that occurred just hours after their discussion last Friday. He wrote, "Elon Musk has canceled the partnership I had with X, which they announced as part of their public commitment to amplifying more diverse voices on their platform. He informed me of his decision hours after an interview I conducted with him on Friday."

He added, "That interview will remain the premiere episode of The Don Lemon Show on Monday, March 18. Elon publicly encouraged me to join X with a new show, saying I would have his full support, and that his digital town square is for all." Taking it further, Lemon said, "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. We had a good conversation." He continued, "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."

As reported by The Guardian, Musk's company initially unveiled the talk show agreement with Lemon back in January, marking X's ambitious foray into video content and its strategy to attract prominent hosts to the platform. Lemon also wrote, "Our conversation will be available on YouTube, wherever you listen to podcasts and X This will be just the first of many episodes of The Don Lemon Show. While Elon goes back on his word, I will be doubling down on my commitment to free speech and I cannot wait to get started." Additionally, Lemon, a standout personality at CNN, found himself abruptly dismissed by the network in a shocking twist last April.

Following internal conflicts with fellow staff members and an unsuccessful stint as a morning show host, Lemon's departure from CNN occurred. Now, Lemon shared a snapshot from the pivotal interview on his social media account, along with breaking the news of the cancellation in a video on X. Additionally, tech journalist and podcaster Kara Swisher chimed in on X through a series of posts, referencing a prediction she had made earlier. She said, "I had told Don that this is exactly what would occur, including at a recent book tour event in NYC for my memoir, Burn Book, he moderated, despite promises by Musk and CEO Linda Yaccarino — who extravagantly touted this deal at CES to advertisers — that this time was different."

Meanwhile, Musk has had difficulty attracting top talent to X as he tries to shift the platform toward video content and persuade influencers to share their content there. He also recently announced the launch of a new long-form video streaming app for smart TVs, part of the platform's efforts to recover declining advertising revenue. Musk is now justifying his decision to end the partnership with Lemon, arguing that Lemon was treating his upcoming show as "CNN, but on social media," according to Fox News.