Don Lemon had a lot of questions that Elon Musk apparently wasn’t ready to answer.
Lemon inked a talk show deal in January with Musk, who currently owns X (formerly Twitter). But on March 13, Lemon revealed Musk abruptly ended the contract after he sat down for a “tense” interview with the former CNN anchor.
On Friday, Lemon stopped by The View and shared a new clip from the upcoming premiere of The Don Lemon Show.
Related Story: Don Lemon Sits Down With CNN and Calls B.S. on Elon Musk’s Free Speech Claims
Lemon set up the clip by saying he was seeking answers from Musk about spreading misinformation on X by claiming “DEI” – Diversity, Equity & Inclusion – is being used by airlines to hire more women and minority pilots who aren’t necessarily qualified.
Lemon told The View hosts he reminded Musk that a female pilot safely landed an Alaska Airlines plane in January, when a door panel blew off the Boeing jet mid-flight.
That same month, Musk posted on X: “Do you want to fly in an airplane where they prioritized DEI hiring over your safety? That is actually happening… People will die due to DEI.”
Lemon’s promo clip showed him grilling Musk about those comments.
“Do you believe that women and minority pilots are inherently less intelligent and less skilled that white male pilots?” Lemon asks.
“No, I’m just saying we should not lower standards for them,” Musk replies.
“But there’s no evidence that the standards are being lowered when it comes to the airline industry,” Lemon fires back.
“Ok, you’ve repeatedly said that there’s no evidence that the standards are being lowered, then watch the replies showing all evidence that it is,” Musk says.
“Replies though on social media and Twitter are not necessarily fact and evidence. They are people’s opinions,” Lemon says.
Musk obviously didn’t like Lemon’s questions because the tech billionaire sent a text message to Lemon’s agent last Friday, writing: “Contract is Cancelled.”
Sunny Hostin, who is a former prosecutor, pointed out on The View that “the law doesn’t really work like that.”
Lemon wouldn’t comment on how much money he might be owed and simply said, “I don’t want to talk about that yet because there’s a lot going on.”
Hostin and Ana Navarro reminded Lemon that they warned him things would end badly with the notoriously prickly Musk.
“I went into this with my eyes open,” Lemon said while smiling.
The Don Lemon Show debuts Monday, March 18, on YouTube and other podcast platforms.
Watch the promo clip at the 6:50 mark in the video below.
