Don Lemon sues Elon Musk and X over his canceled talk show

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Don Lemon has sued X owner Elon Musk over the former CNN anchor’s failed talk show that was supposed to air on the social media platform.

Attorneys representing Lemon filed the lawsuit on August 1 in the Superior Court of California and accused Musk of fraud, negligent misrepresentation, misappropriation of Lemon’s name and likeness and a breach of express contract.

The Independent has reached out to X for comment.

Lemon was slated to host a show on X in January 2024. At the time, Lemon and X had a content partnership deal, but Musk canceled the deal in March, Variety reports.

The tech mogul reportedly alerted Lemon of the cancellation by texting the reporter's agent the message "contract is canceled," according to the filing.

The lawsuit claims that Musk and X agreed to pay Lemon $1.5 million — $200,000 of which was flagged for up-front payment — under the content deal.

The X show was supposed to be Lemon’s return to media after his high-profile exit from CNN. Lemon once had his own primetime show on the network but later was moved to a new morning show. However, reports of his clashes with coworkers and allegations of misogyny led to his April 2024 firing.

The deal also reportedly included an option for Lemon to renew the one-year deal twice under the same terms, 60 percent of the gross ad revenue that X received from ads generated from the show and views-based performance bonuses.

It also allowed Lemon to retain the ownership of any content he created on the platform.

Lemon never obtained a signed agreement from Musk. The lawsuit says the deal was negotiated over a phone call between Musk and Lemon on June 16, 2023.

“Lemon expressed reservations about entering into a partnership with X due to the ongoing controversies surrounding the X platform," the lawsuit says. "In response, and to induce Lemon to enter into an exclusive partnership deal with X, Musk represented to Lemon that he would have full authority and control over the work he produced even if disliked by Defendants, and that there would be no need for a formal written agreement or to ‘fill out paperwork.’”

An attorney representing Lemon accused Musk and X of using the news of Lemon's new show as a way to drive advertisers before dropping him.

“This case is straightforward. X executives used Don to prop up their advertising sales pitch, then canceled their partnership and dragged Don’s name through the mud," attorney Carney Shegerian said. "You don’t have to be a genius to see the fraud, negligence, and reputational damage here. Don is an accomplished and hard-hitting journalist who’s committed to defending his good name and holding X’s executives accountable. We look forward to our day in court.”

In March, X issued its own statement regarding the situation.

“‘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 statement said. "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.”

Musk gave his own statement, describing Lemon — who he referred to with a Lemon emoji — as "demanding" and wanting to "rehash the dying CNN business model."

Lemon’s lawsuit asks for an unpsecified amount of money.