Don Lemon says he was fired by CNN without warning. Network blasts ‘inaccurate’ statement

Prominent CNN host Don Lemon on Monday announced that he has been fired after 17 years at the cable news network.

“I was informed this morning by my agent that I have been terminated by CNN,” Lemon wrote in a statement posted on Twitter. “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 departure was swift. Lemon had appeared on “CNN This Morning” earlier in the day.

The network confirmed the news in a statement.

“CNN and Don have parted ways,” CNN Chief Executive Chris Licht said in the statement. “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.”

But CNN also challenged Lemon’s account of how he was fired.

“Don Lemon’s statement about this morning’s events is inaccurate,” the network said in a statement posted online. “He was offered an opportunity to meet with management but instead released a statement on Twitter.”

The move came as CNN began facing resistance from advertisers and potential guests for the morning news program “CNN This Morning,” which Lemon co-anchored, according to people familiar with the matter who were not authorized to comment.

Lemon was briefly suspended in February after he made offensive comments about when a woman is past her “prime” while speaking about 51-year-old Republican former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley, who is running for the party’s presidential nomination for the 2024 election.

In an unusual move, Licht told staff in a memo announcing Lemon’s return from suspension that the anchor would undergo “formal training” — most likely diversity, equity and inclusion instruction from parent company Warner Bros. Discovery’s human resources department.

In his Twitter statement on Monday, Lemon indicated that he had been blindsided by the news.

“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,” Lemon wrote.

“It is clear that there are some larger issues at play,” Lemon said. “With that said, I want to thank my colleagues and the many teams I have worked with for an incredible run. They are the most talented journalists in the business, and I wish them all the best.”

Lemon became a popular figure in CNN’s prime-time lineup for nearly eight years with “Don Lemon Tonight,” but his move to co-anchoring a morning show proved rocky.

The uproar over his remarks about Haley prompted conservatives to pile on the network, which has been attempting to move to the political center after enduring much criticism from former President Trump and his allies.

Lemon’s sexist remarks also fomented anger among CNN’s female employees. Lemon was trying to critique Haley’s statements that political leaders over 75 should undergo competency testing. But Lemon’s attempt to attack one type of ageism went awry.

“All the talk about age makes me uncomfortable — I think it’s a wrong road to go down,” Lemon began. “She says politicians, or something, are not in their prime. Nikki Haley isn’t in her prime — sorry — when a woman is considered to be in her prime in her 20s and 30s, maybe 40s.”

Co-anchor Poppy Harlow interjected, telling Lemon to “wait,” and asked a couple of times, “Prime for what?”

The distraction added to the network’s woes, which had been roiled for months by layoffs, cost-cutting and the 2022 ouster of the network’s longtime leader Jeff Zucker.

CNN’s new owners Warner Bros. Discovery tasked Licht with tempering CNN’s most outspoken anchors and attracting more conservatives to appear on the network.