After 17 years of anchoring on CNN, Don Lemon was fired, giving CNN a hole in their prime-time lineup.

Don Lemon began his anchoring career working for local news stations: WBRC in Alabama, WCAU in Philadelphia, and KTVI in St. Louis. He then got his big break when he started working for NBC News. He worked on the Today Show and NBC Nightly News. His last stop before entering CNN was WMAQ-TV, where he won three Emmys for his anchoring. This caught the eye of CNN, and they hired him in 2006 as one of the first queer and black cable news anchors.

Lemon became a household name in the news in 2014 with his hit prime-time show “CNN Tonight with Don Lemon.” He discussed a variety of topics on the show, ranging from politics to the reality of being African American. Along with hosting CNN tonight, he was featured on CNN’s New Year’s program, where he appeared hilariously intoxicated with co-host Brooke Baldwin. In October 2022, he announced his departure from the prestigious prime-time spot to host CNN This Morning with co-hosts Alisyn Camerota and Laura Coates. His run on the show would last a short six months, as he departed the CNN network in April 2023.

Don Lemon’s firing from CNN was years in the making, as the star anchor had been digging himself a deeper and deeper hole. In 2018, he was accused by a bartender in the Hamptons of New York of sexual assault. In 2022, these charges were dropped, but the allegations were serious blows to Lemon’s character. In 2023, Don Lemon made a sexist remark towards Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley. He said, “Nikki Haley isn’t in her prime, sorry… When a woman is considered being in her prime in her 20s, 30s and maybe her 40s.” This obviously sparked outrage, as immediately after the comment, he was suspended for a short period. Although he later apologized, this made the network lose faith in him. Another nail in the coffin was Chris Lict’s taking over as CEO of CNN. His aim was to move away from the constant talk about Trump on the network, giving it a more general news focus. This hurt Lemon, as he was one of the main people constantly talking about Trump.

On April 17th, 2023, Lemon was fired from CNN. Lemon was quite angry at the dismissal, as he said, “After 17 years at CNN, I would have thought someone in management would have the decency to tell me directly.” Nikki Haley, the woman who he defamed for her age, proclaimed, “All I’ll say is, Who’s in their prime now?” The CEO of CNN, Chris Lict, said, “Don will forever be a part of the CNN family, and we thank him for his contributions over the past 17 years. We wish him well and will be cheering him on in his future endeavors.”

Although he has had a large fall from grace, his name will still certainly bring viewers to any network willing to hire him. His next moves in his career are unknown, but whenever the superstar anchor comes back, his return will be incredible.