Former CNN host Don Lemon filed a lawsuit against Elon Musk this week, hitting the tech billionaire for terminating an agreement they made earlier this year on a new show.
The complaint, filed Thursday in California Superior Court in San Francisco, accused the social media platform X — which is owned by Musk — of using Lemon’s “good name, likeness, identity, and reputation” to boost their own reputation, attract advertisers and to make a profit. Lemon also alleged he was not paid after the contract was terminated.
“Contrary to the promises and representations made to Lemon, once Defendants were enriched and gained the benefits of using Lemon’s name, likeness, identity, and reputation, they reneged on their express agreement with Lemon and have failed to compensate him, citing to false pretenses for their breach of the partnership agreement,” the lawsuit states.
The filing also noted that in the deal, X agreed to pay Lemon $1.5 million annually for creating videos for the platform, a percentage of the advertising revenue earned from his content and additional payments as he gained followers on the platform.
According to the complaint, Musk told Lemon in a phone call last year that they would not need to have a formal written agreement or “fill out paperwork.”
“This case is straightforward. X’s executives used Don to prop up their advertising sales pitch, then canceled their partnership and dragged Don’s name through the mud,” Carney Shegerian, an attorney for Lemon, said in a statement.
“You don’t have to be a genius to see the fraud, negligence, and reputational damage here. Don’s a hard-hitting journalist who’s committed to defending his good name. We look forward to our day in court,” Shegerian added.
Lemon revealed in January that he would be launching a new show on X, months after his split from CNN last year. However, the host said in March that Musk canceled the show just a week before it was slated to roll out.
For the first episode in March, Musk agreed to sit down for an interview with Lemon. Within one day of taping, the lawsuit claimed he texted Lemon’s agent to say that the deal was off.
The tech mogul criticized Lemon after he announced the show was canceled earlier this year.
“His approach was basically just ‘CNN, but on social media,’ which doesn’t work, as evidenced by the fact that CNN is dying,” Musk said at the time, after being interviewed by Lemon.
The Hill has reached out to X for comment.
