The “Don Lemon Show” was initially planned exclusively for the short messaging service X.
Former CEO Musk Displeased with Talk Show Featuring Himself
The “Don Lemon Show” was initially planned exclusively for the short messaging service X. The guest of the first episode: X owner Musk himself. However, the CEO seemed to take issue with some of the questions: even before the premiere, he announced the end of the partnership.
Cancellation of Talk Show Collaboration
The platform X, formerly known as Twitter, aims to attract new users and, above all, new advertisers with talk shows covering politics, culture, and sports. However, X has now decided to drop the collaboration with the first planned show after CEO Elon Musk appeared on the debut episode.
Musk Apparently “Angry” about Interview Questions
The reasons behind canceling the talk show before the first airing were not disclosed by the X operators. Don Lemon, the former CNN anchor, also did not specify why his show would no longer run on X.
In a video posted by Lemon on X, he hinted that Musk was unhappy with the questions asked during the interview for the premiere episode. Lemon mentioned Musk was “angry” with him and the conversation they had. However, Lemon did not reveal which question might have caused such discontent from Musk to lead to the premature end of the talk show.
Handling of Hate Speech a Sensitive Topic
In a discussion between Lemon and CNN anchor Erin Burnett aired on CNN, excerpts from the Musk interview were already shown. Reportedly, Musk responded sharply to inquiries about the spreading of hate speech on X. Lemon even asked whether it was the responsibility of X operators to restrict the dissemination of such content. Musk retorted that he did not have to answer questions from journalists, adding, “The only reason I’m participating in this interview is because you are on the X platform and have requested it. Otherwise, I would not give this interview.”
Shift in Distribution Plan
Following the collaboration announcement with Lemon in January, three 30-minute episodes of his show were supposed to be exclusive on X for 24 hours before being available elsewhere online. Lemon will now present the “Don Lemon Show” simultaneously on YouTube, as a podcast, and also on X. The interview with Musk is scheduled for the first episode to air next Monday.