Elon Musk and X have asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed by former CNN anchor Don Lemon, who claimed they defrauded him by canceling a partnership on the social media platform following a contentious interview.
In a filing submitted Monday night in San Francisco federal court, Musk argued that he did nothing wrong by allegedly telling Lemon there was “no need” for a written contract and that Lemon would have “full authority and control” over his work even if Musk and X disagreed with his views.
Musk dismissed Lemon’s claim as unreasonable, stating that Lemon should not have relied on a vague statement to forego a formal contract for a multimillion-dollar partnership.
He also blamed the breakdown of the partnership in March on Lemon, saying that while he initially believed the collaboration could succeed, Lemon “soured the relationship” after conducting an “invasive and inappropriate” interview.
In that interview, Lemon questioned Musk on issues like content moderation, hate speech, and Musk’s drug use.
X joined Musk in seeking dismissal of the lawsuit, stating that while the collapse of a high-profile business arrangement might lead to “upset feelings,” it did not entitle Lemon to prevail in court. Lemon had sought a minimum of $1.5 million, plus a share of advertising revenue in the first year, with the potential to earn millions more by drawing followers and advertisers to X.
Lemon’s lawsuit comes as X, formerly known as Twitter, faces challenges from advertisers who left the platform over concerns about hate speech and misinformation following Musk’s $44 billion acquisition in 2022.
In his filing, Musk also argued that the case did not belong in California, where it was originally filed in state court, because he resides in Texas while Lemon lives in New York. Musk suggested the case could be moved to Texas as an alternative.
Lemon, who spent 17 years at CNN and became one of its most recognizable figures, was fired in April 2023 after making on-air comments about women and then-Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley that were widely criticized as sexist. He later apologized for those remarks.
The case is Lemon v. Musk et al, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No. 24-06487.
