Don Lemon lawyers up in bid to squeeze cash out of CNN after ouster: reports
Fired CNN anchor Don Lemon is reportedly lawyering up after his surprise ouster from the cable news network on Monday, setting the stage for a possible legal battle with CNN.
Lemon, the 57-year-old now-former co-host of “CNN This Morning,” signed a contract with CNN that runs until 2026, according to the New York Times.
The newspaper cited “two people with direct knowledge of his deal” as saying there is roughly $20 million left on his contract, though it is unclear whether CNN intends to pay him the remainder.
News of Lemon’s firing was announced by Lemon himself, who tweeted that the network informed his agent that he had been let go instead of telling him directly.
But CNN released a statement denying Lemon’s claim, saying: “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.”
News of Lemon’s hiring of LA-based entertainment litigator Bryan Freedman was reported by ex-CNN personality Brian Stelter as well as other outlets, including the Times.
Freedman, who co-founded the law firm Freedman & Taitelman LLP, has represented other high-octane media personalities in multimillion-dollar fights after they were shown the door, including former colleague Chris Cuomo and broadcasting star Megyn Kelly.
The Post has sought comment from Freedman and CNN.
Tucker Carlson, who was let go by Fox News on Monday, has also hired Freedman, according to reports. Fox News is a subsidiary of Fox Corp., the sister company of The Post’s corporate parent, News Corp.
Cuomo hired Freedman after the primetime star was fired by CNN over revelations that he provided consulting services to help his brother, then-New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, fight sexual harassment allegations.
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Cuomo, who is hosting his own primetime show on the NewsNation cable outlet, is reportedly demanding $125 million from CNN.
The dispute is being adjudicated through arbitration. The Post has sought comment from Cuomo’s representatives.
Freedman also was recently retained by Tiffany Cross, the ex-MSNBC anchor who was fired by network boss Rashida Jones.
Last fall, Cross, who has a history of inflammatory comments on air, was informed by her bosses at the Comcast-owned network that her contract would not be renewed.
CNN reportedly let Lemon go after network executives grew “exasperated” over a tense, on-air exchange with GOP presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy.
Lemon was visibly irritable last Wednesday during a conversation with Ramaswamy, who touted the Second Amendment and how gun rights have historically benefited African Americans.
At one point during the interview, Lemon snapped at producers who were trying to communicate with him through an earpiece.
The controversies leading up to Don Lemon’s CNN firing
Don Lemon is no stranger to controversy.
The now-ex-CNN anchor was in hot water multiple times in the lead-up to Monday’s shocking firing — from his infamous Nikki Haley “past her prime” remark to a screaming match with a female co-host and alleged “diva” behavior.
CNN hasn’t provided a public explanation for Lemon’s ouster after 17 years with the cable news network. But Lemon took to Twitter to insist he had been blindsided by the news after hosting “CNN This Morning” earlier in the day.
Below are just a few of Lemon’s recent controversies.
Beef with his co-host
In December last year, Lemon is said to have “screamed” at his co-anchor Kaitlan Collins after an on-air segment, sources told The Post at the time.
When the cameras stopped rolling after the Dec. 8 show, he allegedly approached Collins and unleashed on her in front of staffers for supposedly “interrupting” him on air.
“Don screamed at Kaitlan, who was visibly upset and ran out of the studio,” one source said.
In the aftermath, a source said: “At this point, Kaitlan wants to be on set with Don as little as possible … It’s messy.”
Soccer spat
Just weeks before his alleged screaming match, Lemon clashed with his two female co-hosts over on-air remarks he made about women’s soccer.
Lemon got into an awkward dispute with both Collins and Harlow after he suggested the US men’s soccer team should get paid more than the women’s side.
“The men’s team makes more money. If they make more money, then they should get more money,” Lemon said.
“The men’s team makes more money because people are more interested in the men.”
Diva-like behavior
A damning Variety magazine report published earlier this month alleged Lemon has a long history of sexist and “diva-like behavior.”
The report cited roughly a dozen former CNN staffers who listed several alleged instances of misogynistic behavior.
“Please, I cannot keep a thought if you guys are talking in my ear,” he said at one point during the segment.
Lemon’s ouster comes on the heels of several embarrassing incidents, including sexist remarks about GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley’s age as well as an outburst at co-anchor Kaitlan Collins that took place in full view of staffers.
Kelly enlisted the services of Freedman in the midst of her highly publicized divorce from NBC, the Comcast-owned network which lured the former Fox News star with a mammoth contract in 2017.
After Kelly’s tumultuous stint at NBC, the network paid out the full $69 million as stipulated in her contract as part of a severance package in 2019.
Freedman’s resume includes helping former “Bachelor” host Chris Harrison secure a $10 million payout from Disney-owned ABC after the network dropped him over comments he made defending a contestant who attended a Confederate-themed party.
In 2020, Freedman represented Gabrielle Union after the actress filed a racial discrimination complaint against Comcast-owned NBC for firing her as host of “America’s Got Talent.”
The two sides negotiated a settlement — the terms of which were not disclosed.
Freedman was also hired by Jordan Belfort, the real-life “Wolf of Wall Street” who is suing the production company behind the Leonardo DiCaprio blockbuster film for $300 million.
Belfort alleges that Red Granite, the film’s production company, bought the rights to his memoir using ill-gotten funds from the 1MDB scandal.
