Musk Blames Don Lemon’s ‘Invasive’ Interview for Canceling Show on X

Former CNN star is suing Musk over failed $1.5 million deal
X owner says journalist’s interview led to ‘sour’ relationship

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By Kurt Wagner

January 29, 2025 at 6:30 PM UTC

Updated on

January 29, 2025 at 10:59 PM UTC

This article is for subscribers only.

Elon Musk cited Don Lemon’s “invasive and charged interview” with the X owner as grounds for walking away from a $1.5 million partnership deal in early 2024, after the former CNN star escalated a legal feud over a canceled new show.

Lemon, who was fired from the network in 2023, sued Musk in August after the billionaire’s social network backed away from partnering with the high-profile journalist to create exclusive video shows for X. The first episode of Lemon’s show was a sit-down interview with Musk, who purchased the platform formally known as Twitter in October 2022 for $44 billion.