CNN Refutes Don Lemon's 'Inaccurate' Claim On Twitter About His Termination

Don Lemon tweeted that he was "stunned" after learning he had been "terminated" by CNN. He claimed he had no idea he would lose his job after working at the news network for 17 years.

CNN has now refuted Lemon's claims, calling them "inaccurate." Before the news anchor's tweet, CNN released a statement thanking him for his hard work over the years. 

Lemon's firing comes after he received backlash for his comments on Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley, which led to a scathing exposé by Variety on his alleged misogynistic behavior.

Read on to find out more.

On Monday, Don Lemon shocked fans with the news that he'd been terminated from his role as a news anchor at CNN. His account of the surprise termination accused the news network of being indecent and failing to inform him directly.

However, CNN quickly labeled Lemon's tweets false, saying their former anchor had misrepresented the situation. The tweet by CNN Communications read, "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."

Not long before Lemon made his accusatory tweets, CNN had released a statement on the termination. It read, "CNN and Don have parted ways. Don will forever be a part of the CNN family, and we thank him for his contributions over the past 17 years. We wish him well and will be cheering him on in his future endeavors."

CNN firing Lemon comes not long after his controversy with Republican presidential candidate Nikki Haley. In a February episode of "CNN This Morning," Lemon and co-hosts, Poppy Harlow and Kaitlan Collins discussed various politicians' ages.

During their conversation, he addressed Haley's previous statement that politicians over the age of 75 should be compelled to undergo mental competency tests. Lemon said, "This whole talk about age makes me uncomfortable. I think it's the wrong road to go down."

Lemon stated that Haley "isn't in her prime," saying, "A woman is considered to be in their prime in 20s and 30s and maybe 40s." When Harlow asked Lemon to clarify his words, the anchor said, "That's not according to me. ... If you Google 'When is a woman in her prime,' it'll say 20s, 30s, and 40s. I don't necessarily — I'm not saying I agree with that."

Hours after his comments on Haley went viral on social media, Lemon issued an apology. He tweeted, "The reference I made to a woman's 'prime' this morning was inartful and irrelevant, as colleagues and loved ones have pointed out, and I regret it."

The anchor added that he now knows that a "woman's age doesn't define her either personally or professionally." After that, Lemon was absent from three CNN news broadcasts. At the time, Chairman Chris Licht notified CNN employees in a memo obtained by People that they had a "frank and meaningful conversation" with Lemon.

The company memo also included that the anchor had agreed to "participate in formal training, as well as continuing to listen and learn." It further read, "We take this situation very seriously. It is important to me that CNN balances accountability with fostering a culture in which people can own, learn and grow from their mistakes."

Besides his controversy with Haley, Lemon recently got accused of being "sexist" to several female co-workers. An exposé by Variety on the reports was titled "Don Lemon's Misogyny at CNN, Exposed: Malicious Texts, Mocking Female Co-Workers and 'Diva-Like' Behavior."

The article claimed that Lemon had acted questionably towards many women on the news network since he joined in 2006. They cited several interviews with anonymous sources, who alleged that Lemon had threatened and anonymously bullied co-anchor Kyra Phillips in 2008.

A spokesperson for Lemon has since told Yahoo that the claims are "patently false" and have no basis. They also accused Variety of failing to verify before they published "reckless and irresponsible" content.

The rep noted that the report against Lemon is "riddled with patently false anecdotes and lacks concrete evidence, relying solely on unsourced and unsubstantiated 15-year-old anonymous gossip."