Former CNN host Don Lemon will reportedly receive $24.5 million in a separation deal almost one year after being fired from the mainstream news outlet.
According to the New York Post, “Lemon’s ouster came just two months after he was forced to apologize for saying on air that as a woman over age 50, GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley was past ‘her prime.’”
JUST IN: According to recent news reports, Don Lemon, a popular anchor at CNN, has settled his firing dispute with the network for a whopping $24.5 million.
It's worth noting that Lemon had previously criticized former United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley for her age while… pic.twitter.com/2qz8TZ5qKd
— 🇺🇸 Larry 🇺🇸 (@LarryDJonesJr) February 27, 2024
The $24.5 million sum is the same amount that Lemon would have been paid had CNN kept him on staff for the final 3.5 years of his contract.
At the time he was fired, Lemon wrote on social media, “I am stunned after 17 years at CNN I would have thought that someone in management would have the decency to tell me directly.”
“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,” he added. “It is clear that there are some larger issues at play.”
The network disagreed with Lemon’s description of the events surrounding his firing. A CNN social media account stated that Lemon and his representatives had the opportunity to meet with management and they refused.
“Don Lemon’s statement about this morning’s events is inaccurate,” CNN Communications tweeted. “He was offered an opportunity to meet with management but instead released a statement on Twitter.”
After his comments about Haley’s age, Lemon apologized both on-air and to CNN staff members. During an editorial meeting, Lemon reportedly told staff members, “When I make a mistake, I own it. And I own this one as well.”
Two months after that apology, according to People, Lemon held a controversial interview with GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy that also contributed to his firing.
Lemon has moved on from the network and is getting ready to launch his own show on X entitled “The Don Lemon Show.”
“I’ve heard you …and I am back, bigger, bolder, freer!” Lemon wrote. “My new media company’s first project is The Don Lemon Show. It will be available to everyone, easily, whenever and wherever you want it, streaming on the platforms where the conversations are happening.”
