Don Lemon, women candidates, sexism and ageism

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Journalist and CNN host Don Lemon says he regrets the way he talked about “women in their prime” during a segment on CNN’s morning show on Thursday.

“The reference I made to a woman’s “prime” this morning was inartful and irrelevant, as colleagues and loved ones have pointed out, and I regret it,” Lemon wrote in a tweet on Thursday afternoon, following his remarks on “CNN This Morning.”

“A woman’s age doesn’t define her either personally or professionally. I have countless women in my life who prove that every day,” he continued.

Lemon was widely panned for comments made hours earlier about Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, who called for competency tests for politicians over 75 years old as part of her campaign launch earlier this week.

“This whole talk about age makes me uncomfortable. I think it’s the wrong road to go down. She says people, you know, politicians or something are not in their prime,” Lemon said on the air. “Nikki Haley isn’t in her prime, sorry.”

“A woman is considered to be in their prime in 20s and 30s and maybe 40s,” he added.
The host’s comments were met with immediate pushback from his female co-hosts and resounding scorn from critics, many on the political right, including Haley herself.

“Liberals can’t stand the idea of having competency tests for older politicians to make sure they can do the job,” said Haley, who also sent a fundraising email about the CNN anchor’s comments. “[By the way], it’s always the liberals who are the most sexist.”

CNN staffers are fuming over Don Lemon’s cringeworthy apology for his on-air, sexist diatribe about 51-year-old Nikki Haley — with some calling for the anchor to be fired.

“He has got to go,” a CNN insider told The Post. “He is hurting the brand. Women aren’t even focused on the sexism — it’s the damage to CNN.”

“Everyone is pissed about it,” a second CNN source said, referring to Lemon’s attention-grabbing gaffes, “It makes us the story and it hurts us.”

Lemon delivered an awkward mea culpa during a 9 a.m. Friday call with editorial staffers that was led by an upset CNN CEO Chris Licht, in which Lemon rambled on at length, trying to explain away his remarks before apologizing.

“He said he was sorry two minutes into the call,” one source close to the situation said of Lemon. “It was very self-centered and he lied. It was not his idea to apologize. They made him do it.”

Lemon was conspicuously absent from “CNN This Morning” just 24 hours after he put his foot in his mouth with his rant about 51-year-old Nikki Haley being “not in her prime” — prompting co-host Poppy Harlow to reportedly walk off the set.
After the incident, Harlow flew off to Salt Lake City, where she will cover NBA All-Star weekend festivities, leaving only Kaitlan Collins in the New York studio from the troubled trio. Audie Cornish, the former National Public Radio journalist, filled in for the 56-year-old Lemon.

“Don has the day off,” Collins said at the top of the broadcast, failing to elaborate on Lemon’s absence — much less mentioning Thursday’s disastrous blowup — as she introduced Cornish.
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As it turns out, Lemon decided to start the long Presidents’ Day Weekend early by heading to Miami for what one source said was a “pre-planned vacation.” He is expected to return to the air on Tuesday, another source told The Post.

Lemon was pictured emerging from the South Beach surf with a smile on his face and laying on chaise lounge after his bizarre Friday morning plea to his CNN colleagues.

Before he soaked up the Florida sunshine, Lemon began his phone call to staff by saying he was likely the first person “in the history” of CNN to apologize and that it was his idea to address the company.

Lemon went on to declare that “the people I am closest to in this organization are women,” and called out prominent journalists like Dana Bash, Erin Burnett and his “CNN This Morning” co-hosts Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins, whom he said he respects. He also mentioned his mother.

“He doubled-down by explaining his comments and then he said, ‘I’m friends with women so I can’t be sexist.’”

Really Don?” the source shot back. “That’s like saying I have black friends so I can’t be racist.”

Other staffers in New York said Lemon is the “talk of the newsroom” and raged over the negative publicity he has cast on the revamped morning show, which Licht launched with high expectations in November. However, the program’s ratings continue to tank.

“Everyone is talking about the show for all the wrong reasons,” one source said. “This is not ‘The View.’ The show is a train wreck. It’s more than growing pains at this point. They aren’t vibing. Something needs to change.”

Embattled CNN anchor Don Lemon won’t appear on the network’s morning show Monday for the second consecutive day as the fallout from his sexist remarks controversy swirls at the cable network.

Lemon was scheduled to be back in the anchor chair at “CNN This Morning,” but opted to take off for the Presidents’ Day holiday, network spokesperson Matt Dornic told The Post.

“I thought he was coming back tomorrow but he is taking the holiday,” Dornic said in an email.

Lemon’s absence on Monday was first reported by the Daily Beast, who cited network sources that claimed his position was being discussed at the highest levels at the company.

“There are ongoing conversations about Don’s future,” one source told the outlet. “He is a constant distraction.”

Anchor Don Lemon will return to work Wednesday after he receives formal training for his comments about Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley on “CNN This Morning,” network CEO Chris Licht said in an email to employees Monday night.

Lemon has since apologized, but he has been widely condemned, including by Licht. According to The New York Times, Licht chastised Lemon during an editorial call Friday, saying his remarks were “upsetting, unacceptable and unfair” and a “huge distraction.”

“When I make a mistake, I own it,” Lemon said. “And I own this one as well.”

Don Lemon has been terminated by CNN, the anchor announced on Monday just hours after he’d ended his morning broadcast.

“I was informed this morning by my agent that I have been terminated by CNN. I am stunned,” he tweeted in a fiery post announcing his exit. “After 17 years at CNN I would have thought that someone in management would have the decency to tell me directly. At no time was I ever given any indication that I would not be able to continue to do the work I have loved at the network. It is clear that there are some larger issues at play. With that said, I want to thank my colleagues and the many teams I have worked with for an incredible run. They are the most talented journalists in the business, and I wish them all the best.”

CNN CEO Chris Licht confirmed the news in a memo to network staffers: “CNN and Don Lemon have parted ways. Don will forever be a part of the CNN family, and we thank him for his contributions over the past 17 years,” he wrote. “We wish him well and will be cheering him on in his future endeavors.”

CNN disputed Lemon’s characterization of his termination in a statement. “Don Lemon’s statement about this morning’s events is inaccurate,” wrote the network’s PR shop. “He was offered an opportunity to meet with management but instead released a statement on Twitter.”

CNN This Morning hosts Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins, who Lemon hosted alongside, will continue as a duo for the time being, a source familiar with the matter told The Daily Beast.

CNN anchor John King seemed surprised by the news during Monday’s broadcast of Inside Politics. “I don’t know the details happening while I’m sitting in the chair here, but I work here. I love this place,” King said. “Certainly wish Don the best. He’s always been good to me as a colleague.”

“I’m just relieved,” one female on-air CNN personality told The Daily Beast. “I really never thought that there wouldn’t be any accountability right. I mean, these guys are untouchable for the most part.”

Lemon was moved to mornings with Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins in September, just more than a year after his primetime show was given an eponymous name. It was a move CNN publicly advertised as “no stronger combination of talent” but was privately considered a last-ditch effort to save the anchor’s job.

Then the hits kept coming. CNN This Morning premiered in November to ratings that were paltry compared to its predecessor New Day—and have since not improved. Tensions also brewed between Lemon and Collins, partly sparked by comments Lemon would make on women.

But Lemon’s behavior, both in past years and in recent months, seems to suggest there was more going on behind the scenes.