Elon Musk (left) and Don Lemon
Reuters (left) | Getty Images (R)
Former CNN anchor Don Lemon sued Elon Musk on Thursday, accusing him of making false promises to lure the reporter into canceling his interview with the billionaire. Agreement to host programs on social media platforms.
The lawsuit alleges that Musk, who bought Twitter for $44 billion in late 2022 and later renamed it X, used news of his partnership with Lemon to boost the media company’s image and then reneged on the deal without providing him with any compensation.
The lawsuit alleges Lemon “spent hundreds of thousands of dollars” preparing for the show.
In March, shortly after recording the first episode, a one-on-one interview with Musk, the deal to host “The Don Lemon Show” on X was canceled.
“We had a great conversation. Obviously he felt differently,” Lemon said of Musk when Musk announced the partnership was falling apart.
Later Musk say on X Lemon’s approach is “basically just ‘CNN, but on social media,’ and that doesn’t work, as evidenced by the fact that CNN is dying.”
The lawsuit filed Thursday in San Francisco Superior Court alleges that Musk and his co-defendants “intentionally misrepresented their intentions.”
If they “accurately stated” their plan was to use Lemon to “restore Defendants’ reputations and attract advertisers to Platform X,” Lemon would never have agreed, the lawsuit says.
Lemon accuses Musk and X of fraud, negligent misrepresentation, misappropriation of name and likeness, breach of contract and unjust enrichment. He is seeking damages and other relief.
Lemon’s attorney, Carney Shegerian, said in a statement Thursday that X executives “used Don to bolster their ad sales pitch, then canceled their partnership and dragged Don’s name through the mud.”
“You don’t have to be a genius to see the fraud, negligence and reputational damage here,” Shegerian said. “Don is a tough journalist who is dedicated to defending his reputation. We look forward to his day in court.” “
Lemon is Fired from CNN In April 2023, after airing sexist remarks about then-presidential candidate Nikki Haley and the variety show Report About his behind-the-scenes behavior during his 17 years at the network. Lemon’s spokesman at the time said the report was “full of patently false anecdotes” and old gossip.
The 29-page lawsuit said Lemon, who left CNN, was Musk and X’s “best prospect” and that they were looking for “reputable figures” to help with efforts to keep advertisers on the platform.
“(Lemmon) was a well-established, household name gay black man who was the perfect partner to help with their dying advertising revenue,” the lawsuit states.
In mid-December, Lemon met with X CEO Linda Yaccarino and another X executive, Brett Weitz, at a New York City restaurant to discuss a potential exclusive Partnerships. They assured Lemon that he would have “complete authority over his job,” and later promised to “revitalize his career,” according to the lawsuit.
“You’re going to make a lot of money this year,” Weitz allegedly told Lemon in a text message dated Dec. 30, 2023.
The lawsuit does not say Lemon signed the contract, but claims the defendants agreed to pay him $1.5 million, plus other financial benefits, for the one-year deal.
The lawsuit alleges that Lemon “hastily” agreed to the partnership, in part because he was told that the proposal would be withdrawn unless he attended the CES conference in Las Vegas and publicly announced the partnership the same day.
The lawsuit alleges that within a day of Musk’s March 8 interview with Lemon, the Tesla and SpaceX CEO texted the host’s agent to say Lemon’s “contract was cancelled.”
Waits then allegedly told Lemon that he would not be paid “because there was no signed agreement, even though Musk had previously indicated to Lemon that a formal written agreement or ‘fill-out paperwork’ was not required.”
“To date, Defendants have not provided compensation to Lemon pursuant to the exclusive collaboration agreement that Defendants induced Lemon to enter into,” the lawsuit states.
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