Don Lemon says David Ellison’s bid to win conservative viewers for CNN is 'never going to happen'

NEW ORLEANS, LOUISIANA: Former CNN host Don Lemon commented on media proprietor David Ellison and his belief that Paramount Skydance could attract conservative viewers to watch CNN.

Media and political tensions surrounding CNN have intensified as discussions about its future ownership, audience strategy, and recent reporting controversies unfold. Comments from Lemon and members of the Trump administration have highlighted disagreements over the network’s audience, credibility, and journalism. These remarks emerged during a public appearance and a White House briefing, drawing attention to the ongoing debate about CNN’s direction.

Don Lemon on David Ellison’s plan and conservative viewers

Lemon expressed skepticism about the idea that supporters of the conservative movement could be persuaded to watch CNN, even if the network attempted to adjust its approach.

Speaking with Tim Miller at the New Orleans Book Festival on Saturday, March 14, the journalist said, “Those folks are never ever going to watch CNN and they’re never going to watch any network that’s a factual news network.”

Lemon, who worked for CNN from 2006 until he was fired in 2023, explained that the issue came up during a conversation he had with Kevin O’Leary, the 'Shark Tank' investor and host.

O’Leary suggested that the network might need to “come to the middle” to appeal to those voters. Lemon rejected the idea strongly, stating, “You’re out of your mind, that’s never going to happen, are you crazy?”

Lemon also insisted it’s a mistake for Ellison to believe “they’re gonna gain an audience by trying to move a network in a certain direction — in these days it’s to the right — because they think that audience is going to come to them.”

During the same discussion with Miller, Lemon also reflected on the perspective he said he gained following his recent arrest in Los Angeles after an anti-ICE church protest in Minnesota. “It’s crazy,” Lemon said.

He continued, “What perspective did I gain? Is that they’re maniacal and I believe that they are not patriots, I believe that they don’t believe in the Constitution, they don’t believe in the Bill of Rights, because otherwise they would not be conducting themselves in the way that they are and they would not be going after someone who you consider your political rival.”

Trump administration criticizes CNN as David Ellison outlines vision for network

Earlier this month, Ellison said he hopes CNN will serve more viewers in the political middle. He said, “It’s maintained at CBS and it will be maintained at CNN. Really, who we really want to talk to is the 70% of Americans [and] around the world that identify as center-left and center-right. We want to be in the truth business and we want to be in the trust business, and that’s not going to change.”

Meanwhile, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth said he hopes Ellison’s Paramount Skydance completes its $111 billion deal to acquire CNN parent Warner Bros. Discovery as soon as possible.

He criticized CNN during a press briefing on Friday over a report claiming that the "Trump administration underestimated Iran war’s impact on Strait of Hormuz," saying it was "fake news."

“The sooner David Ellison takes over that network, the better,” Hegseth remarked. 

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt also criticized the report in a post on X, calling the story “100% fake news.”

She wrote that CNN ran the report based on three anonymous “sources familiar with discussions.” Leavitt said the Pentagon “has been planning for Iran’s desperate and reckless closure of the Strait of Hormuz for decades, and it has been part of the Trump Administration’s planning well before Operation Epic Fury was ever launched.”

In response, CNN chairman and CEO Mark Thompson defended the network’s reporting in a statement on Friday. He said, “We stand by our journalism. Politicians have an obvious motive for claiming that journalism which raises questions about their decisions is false."