Don Lemon paid $24.5M to settle ouster from CNN: report

Don Lemon will be paid more than $24 million to settle his CNN firing, according to The WrapAFP via Getty Images

Don Lemon and CNN reportedly have reached an agreement after the network fired the news anchor last year.

The deal sees CNN paying the ousted broadcaster $24.5 million, according to The Wrap. The hefty sum is the total amount of money that Lemon would have received had his final contract ended in 3-and-a-half years.

Reps for Lemon didn’t immediately return Page Six’s request for comment.

The former “Don Lemon Tonight” anchor was fired last year after he made a series of sexist comments on-air alongside his female colleagues. CNN

Lemon, 57, came under fire last year after he moved his popular primetime show to the mornings alongside co-hosts Caitlin Collins and Poppy Harlow and made sexist statements about presidential candidate Nikki Haley, 51, being past her prime.

The former “Don Lemon Tonight” host took a brief leave of absence and apologized to viewers and female colleagues for his comments.

“I appreciate the opportunity to be back on @CNNThisMorning today,” Lemon tweeted in February 2023. “To my network, my colleagues and our incredible audience — I’m sorry.

Lemon claimed he learned of his firing from his agent and not the network itself. Getty Images

“I’ve heard you, I’m learning from you, and I’m committed to doing better,” he continued. “See you soon.”

Just a couple of months later, a “stunned” Lemon announced on X (formerly Twitter) that not only had CNN axed him but he also found out from his agent.

CNN later called his version of events “inaccurate.” AFP via Getty Images

“After 17 years at CNN I would have thought someone in management would have the decency to tell me directly,” he wrote.

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“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 there are some larger issues at play.”

Shortly thereafter, CNN Communications released a statement claiming Lemon’s story was “inaccurate.”

He since has launched a new show on Elon Musk’s X. Stephen Lovekin/Shutterstock

“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,” the statement read.

In June 2023, the journalist claimed CNN fired him for refusing to give “liars and bigots” airtime.

Lemon, who has used his time off to lose 30 pounds, launched a new show on X earlier this year.