Don Lemon announced his departure from X, formerly Twitter, on Wednesday. “It’s time for me to leave the platform,” the former CNN anchor said in a video posted to his official account.
“I once believe that it was a place for honest debate and discussion, transparency, and free speech,” Lemon added. “But I now feel it does not serve that purpose.”
Watch Lemon’s farewell to X below:
Lemon also posted a written version of his statement to X, citing the Elon Musk-owned social media platform’s new terms of service as another reason for his decision. As of Friday, all lawsuits against X must be brought in a U.S. district court in Northern Texas or state courts in Tarrant county, Texas. In his statement, Lemon cites Washington Post reporting that suggests the change signals Musk’s attempt to stake out legal territory that’s friendlier to conservatives.
“I think that speaks for itself,” he added.
Once upon a time, of course, Lemon hoped to launch his post-CNN career on X. After parting ways with the network on April 24, 2023—the same day that Tucker Carlson left Fox News—he struck a deal with Musk to host The Don Lemon Show on the platform. But those plans collapsed earlier this year following Lemon’s tense on-camera interview with the tech entrepreneur-turned-close associate of President-elect Donald Trump.
“We had a good conversation,” Lemon wrote at the time. “Clearly he felt differently.” He notably didn’t refer to Musk directly in his farewell to X.
Like many other X-ugees, Lemon said that he plans to establish a stronger presence at Bluesky, the social media platform created by former Twitter head, Jack Dorsey. He also indicated that The Don Lemon Show will continue to stream on YouTube and that he’ll remain active on TikTok, as well as Facebook and Instagram. (While he didn’t mention Threads, Lemon does have a presence on that Mark Zuckerberg-owned platform as well.)
Since Trump’s victory in last week’s election, Lemon has been actively posting his independent coverage to X, most recently remarking on Fox News co-host Pete Hegseth‘s potential elevation to defense secretary.