Don Lemon's Return To The Spotlight Is Straight From Tucker Carlson's Playbook
Don Lemon borrowed a page from Tucker Carlson's playbook when staging his media comeback. The outspoken media personalities lost their high-profile jobs on the same day in April 2023. Lemon lost his long-time on-air role at CNN, following a string of misogynistic incidents against the women he worked with, although the faltering ratings of his morning show were also cited, per AP News. According to former CNN anchor Brian Stelter, who spoke with Entertainment Tonight, CNN's new management team also wasn't fond of Lemon behind the scenes. Carlson, on the other hand, was fired from Fox News because of a series of racially charged text messages that were a part of the network's $1.6 billion lawsuit from Dominion Voting Systems over claims of election rigging, according to People.
A few months later, Carlson landed a new show on X, formerly known as Twitter, called "Tucker on Twitter," per The Hill. Now Lemon has too. On January 9, Lemon took to his personal X account to officially roll out his new self-hosted show. "My new media company's first project is The Don Lemon Show," wrote Lemon. "It will be available to everyone, easily, whenever and wherever you want it, streaming on the platforms where the conversations are happening." Lemon also assured his audience that X would be the first platform to broadcast his new project, which will focus on "politics, culture, sports and entertainment," over three weekly episodes, according to the verified X Business account.
Don Lemon and Tucker Carlson have a tense past
Don Lemon's announcement about his new deal with X, the Elon Musk-owned social media platform, has birthed a wave of congratulatory messages regarding his career pivot. Tucker Carlson was among Lemon's welcoming committee on X, formerly known as Twitter. Carlson retweeted Lemon's announcement. "Congratulations. It's a new world. Welcome," wrote Carlson. Lemon thanked Carlson, tweeting, "Thanks Tucker," in response.
However, as several publications have noted, Lemon and Carlson publicly feuded for several years — usually while on the air, according to TMZ. However, the hosts' tension ran much deeper than a difference of opinion, according to Vanity Fair, which compiled a list of the media personalities' greatest points of contention, including Carlson purposefully butchering Lemon's name and downplaying his racial background. Lemon often took Carlson to task over his commentary, which Lemon felt encouraged white supremacist ideology.
Many fans on social media have reacted to the hosts' likely temporary ceasefire with an influx of humorous takes. "Don lemon and tucker carlson being fired on the same day and then both starting shows on twitter... do u think they're in a situationship," tweeted one observer. Another fan tweeted, "I did not have Don Lemon and Tucker Carlson becoming coworkers on my 2024 bingo card." And they're probably not the only one!