Recent reports have surfaced alleging that Don Lemon, a prominent media personality, submitted a list of extravagant demands to Elon Musk, the owner of X (formerly Twitter), before their planned show was canceled on the social media platform. The claims, published in the New York Post, suggested that Lemon had requested an $8 million salary, a $5 million upfront payment, a Tesla cybertruck, equity stake in X, and the right to approve any changes in X policy related to news content.
Lemon's agent, UTA's Jay Sures, swiftly denied these allegations, labeling them as 'absolute, complete utter nonsense without an iota of truth to it.' The reports emerged shortly after Lemon revealed that Musk had terminated their partnership following an interview that was meant to be the debut episode of Lemon's show on X.
Elon Musk, in response to the situation, likened Lemon to a character from Willy Wonka in a post on X, referring to him as 'Don Veruca Salt.' Musk explained his decision to cancel Lemon's show, citing that Lemon's approach was akin to 'CNN, but on social media,' which Musk believed was not effective. Musk also criticized the lack of authenticity in Lemon's presentation, attributing it to Jeff Zucker's influence.
Despite the cancellation on X, Lemon confirmed that his interview with Musk would still be released on YouTube as scheduled. Lemon also announced that all future episodes of his show would be available on YouTube, emphasizing the platform's openness to diverse voices and perspectives.
In a statement, X reiterated its commitment to free speech and providing a platform for creators to share their content without censorship. However, the platform clarified that it reserves the right to make decisions regarding its business partnerships, leading to the decision not to proceed with a commercial partnership with 'The Don Lemon Show.'
As the controversy unfolds, Lemon's team continues to address the situation, emphasizing their commitment to delivering engaging content to their audience through alternative platforms such as YouTube.
