Former CNN anchor Don Lemon is suing Elon Musk after the tech billionaire canceled his show on X in March.
Mr. Lemon filed his suit Thursday in San Francisco, accusing Mr. Musk and X of luring him with false promises, forcing him to invest thousands of dollars into a prospective web show, only to cancel the show after one episode.
According to Mr. Lemon, Mr. Musk agreed to ink an exclusive deal with him to boost the reputation of X and distract users from the owner’s edgy posts.
In the suit, Mr. Lemon claims he was initially resistant to the idea of starting a show on X, but X CEO Linda Yaccarino convinced him, claiming he would have the full support of the social media platform.
The deal Mr. Lemon signed was worth about $1.5 million and included revenue-sharing options. The pact required Mr. Lemon to post his show on X before he showcased it anywhere else.
The deal collapsed after a contentious Lemon-Musk interview on X. Mr. Lemon pressed Mr. Musk about his content moderation policy on the platform, after which the company announced it was ending its association with Mr. Lemon.
“We reserve the right to make decisions about our business partnerships, and after careful consideration, X decided not to enter into a commercial partnership with the show,” X said at the time.
That alliance was one of the many attempts by Mr. Musk to introduce more exclusive content to X. After some advertisers abandoned the platform last year, he began courting various personalities to launch shows on X.
After Tucker Carlson lost his prime-time spot on Fox News, he launched an X exclusive.
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