One Network Interested in Hiring Both Tucker Carlson and Don Lemon After CNN, Fox News Departures: Report
The upstart cable news network NewsNation reportedly would like to add Tucker Carlson and Don Lemon to its lineup after the two cable hosts were cut loose by their employers Monday.
TMZ reported that a NewsNation insider said network executives flew to New York on Monday to discuss strategies to attract Carlson, the longtime host of Fox News’ “Tucker Carlson Tonight,” and Lemon, whose most recent gig was co-hosting “CNN This Morning.”
The report said the network, which began producing news 24 hours a day just this past week, wants to add one or both men to its roster.
The company would not be able to pay either former anchor anywhere near what it is believed they were making beforehand but wants to make pitches to them, TMZ reported.
Carlson reportedly earned about $20 million per year at Fox News, while Lemon is reported to have earned about $7 million per year at CNN.
Lemon was fired after 17 years at the liberal network and just months after he was demoted from his spot in primetime.
The network contradicted a statement the former host made online about his dismissal.
— Don Lemon (@donlemon) April 24, 2023
CNN said it offered Lemon a chance to speak to management, but that he declined and instead went public.
Don Lemon’s statement about this morning’s events is inaccurate. He was offered an opportunity to meet with management but instead released a statement on Twitter.
— CNN Communications (@CNNPR) April 24, 2023
Carlson, meanwhile, was cut from Fox News’ lineup at the top of his game as the highest-rated primetime host on cable.
The network and the fired host have been tight-lipped about the ouster.
Carlson was in somewhat of a celebratory mood Tuesday at his home in Florida with his wife, the U.K.’s Daily Mail reported.
Tucker Carlson doesn’t give two fox about being ‘fired’ from the network as he tells https://t.co/Rv1nOeM6YT his future plans https://t.co/IpsI1VxZa6 pic.twitter.com/Gxi3jVYBoE
— Daily Mail US (@DailyMail) April 26, 2023
“Retirement is going great so far,” he told a reporter.
“I haven’t eaten dinner with my wife on a weeknight in seven years,” Carlson said.
The Daily Mail described his demeanor as “gleeful.”
Both Carlson and Lemon have reportedly retained heavy-hitting entertainment attorney Brian Freedman, who helped Megyn Kelly secure a $69 million payout after her ouster from NBC News.
The attorney also represents current NewsNation host Chris Cuomo in his lawsuit against CNN, which fired him a year ago.
NewsNation is said to be unbothered by controversies surrounding the exits of both Carlson and Lemon from their previous networks.
The network, formerly WGN America, is owned and operated by Nexstar Media Group Inc., which owns about 200 local television stations.
NewsNation bills itself as “unbiased.” Its lineup includes former CNN host Ashleigh Banfield, former NBC News and ABC News legal analyst Dan Abrams, former ABC News anchor Elizabeth Vargas and former Fox News reporter Leland Vittert.
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