Don Lemon Busts a Malignant Myth: 'There’s Nothing Fake About CNN'

CNN is definitely not fake. That’s the gospel truth, per CNN.

The message was delivered Monday by Don Lemon amid an interview on his recently-launched show
CNN This Morning.

The program had welcomed January 6th documentarian Andrew Callaghan, who floated an idea surely rarely heard on the network: Legacy media played a part in the riot.

Andrew included Don’s network in the claim:

“The movie’s not just about…the Capitol riot and all that. It’s also about…media echo chambers. You know what I mean?”

The host’s answer to that question, as viewers would soon learn, would be “No.” Callahan, continuing:

“And…the dangers of the 24-hour news cycle. And how, I think, mainstream media like Fox — and even CNN — like, [compete] for views by running constant, 24-hour news cycles based upon fear, division, outrage, and panic. Probably to…sell ads. So it’s not just about the Capitol riot.”

Lemon was sour…and confused:

“I’m not exactly sure — first of all, I don’t agree with what you’re saying. But I’m not exactly sure how that played into people going into the Capitol and rioting on January 6th.”

Then Don dropped the mic:

“There’s nothing fake about CNN.”

It’s not the first time he’s defended the network while denying accusations of non-neutral nonsense. Last month, Lemon set Stephen Colbert straight on The Late Show. In light of Chris Licht being installed as CNN’s new CEO, Colbert posed, “Word on the street is that you guys aren’t allowed to be liberal anymore. Is that the case?”

Don downed the premise:

“I don’t think we ever were liberal.”

In 2020, Lemon peeled the fruits of Ted Turner’s brainchild and found partisanship — which was also, curiously, impartiality. Speaking to former Clinton Administration spokesman Joe Lockhart, he assessed things thusly:

“[I]’ve been giving people the facts about the Democratic party, that it’s actually a centrist party…”

Back to fake news, not all CNN critics have used the “F” word. Many have preferred something suction-centric:

In that case, anchor Jim Acosta eventually injected clarity — see “Jim Acosta Accosted; CNN Does Not Stink — So Says CNN.”

Ultimately, not everyone was won over:

In case you missed it…

'They Suck at Their Job': Joe Rogan Searches for the Reason CNN's Anchors Should Be Firedhttps://t.co/LujhwxQI5f pic.twitter.com/fxpmnIcz8T

— Alex Parker (@alexparker1984) December 21, 2022

Back to CNN This Morning, Andrew Callaghan attempted to soften the blow:

“Oh, I’m not saying, like, fake news. I’m just saying ramping people up and increasing division during that period of time. Just watching people kind of fall down the rabbit hole and be pushed into action and, like, just, yeah, falling down the conspiracy rabbit hole.”

Did that make amends? Either way, CNN’s new a.m. attraction has more important things to manage. Here’s hoping it does…