Don Lemon's former 'CNN This Morning' colleagues wish him well
Kaitlan Collins, left, Don Lemon and Poppy Harlow attend a CNN Heroes event in Manhattan in December 2022. Credit: Getty Images for CNN / Mike Coppola
Don Lemon's "CNN This Morning" colleagues wished their fired co-anchor well on Tuesday's edition of the program.
"As you may have heard yesterday," Poppy Harlow told viewers, "CNN parted ways with anchor Don Lemon. In a statement, CNN CEO Chris Licht thanked Don for his contributions over the past 17 years, writing in part, ‘Don will forever be a part of the CNN family. We wish him well and will be cheering him on in his future endeavors.' "
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Don Lemon's "CNN This Morning" colleagues wished their fired co-anchor well on Tuesday's edition of the program.
"As you may have heard yesterday," Poppy Harlow told viewers, "CNN parted ways with anchor Don Lemon. In a statement, CNN CEO Chris Licht thanked Don for his contributions over the past 17 years, writing in part, ‘Don will forever be a part of the CNN family. We wish him well and will be cheering him on in his future endeavors.' "
"Absolutely," added Kaitlan Collins. "Of course, Don was a big part of this show over the last six months. He was one of the first anchors on CNN to have me on his show. That’s something I’ll obviously never forget. I agree with Chris. We wish him the best.”
“We certainly do," agreed Harlow. "Don was one of my first friends here at CNN. I’m so thankful to have worked alongside him and for his support for nearly 15 years here, and I wish him all good things ahead."
Lemon, who keeps a weekend home in Sag Harbor, was abruptly fired Monday following controversy over what many called a misogynistic remark about Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley in February. Additionally, a Variety report on April 5 detailed a history of poor behavior, including verbal abuse toward women. Former CNN colleague Soledad O'Brien told the trade magazine, “Don has long had a habit of saying idiotic and inaccurate things, so it sounds pretty on brand for him.”
Lemon on Monday said on social media, "I was informed this morning by my agent that I have been terminated by CNN. 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. 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. It is clear that there are some larger issues at play." He went on to thank his colleagues and wish them well.
CNN tweeted in response, "Don Lemon’s statement about this morning’s events is inaccurate. He was offered an opportunity to meet with management but instead released a statement on Twitter."
Lemon also received support from an unlikely source, former Fox News anchor Megyn Kelly, who said on her SiriusXM program that Lemon's response to the firing was "not wrong. I mean, everybody knows I'm not exactly Don Lemon's fan, but he's not wrong that if that's true, that he was just told by his agent he was fired and they didn't have the ... [nerve] to tell him man-to-man. I mean, that's just classless. He's got a right to complain about that.”