Why Don Lemon's New Book Doesn't Reveal More Details About His CNN Termination: 'I Was Being Protective' (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Don Lemon.Photo: Cindy Ord/Getty

Don Lemonwas ready to tell all about his experience at CNN, but decided against it.

The broadcast journalist’s latest book,I Once Was Lost, out on Sept. 10, takes readers behind the scenes ofsome of his biggest controversiesduring his tenure at the popular news channel. Lemon, 58, tells PEOPLE the only thing that kept him from spilling it all was his concern about the well-being of his former colleagues and how people would perceive him in the aftermath.

“I would have done more but I wanted to be careful about not coming off as angry or bitter or vengeful because that’s not who I am,” he says. “And also I wanted to be protective of my former colleagues who I love and who are some of the best journalists in the world.”

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“After 17 years at CNN, I would have thought that someone in management would have had the decency to tell me directly. At no time was I ever given any indication that I would not be able to continue to do the work I have loved at the network. It is clear that there are some larger issues at play,” Lemonwrote in a statementafter being fired.

Don Lemon.Jared Siskin/Patrick McMullan via Getty

Jared Siskin/Patrick McMullan via Getty

He thanked his colleagues towards the end of the statement, writing, “They are the most talented journalists in the business, and I wish them all the best.”

At the time of his termination, Lemon was hostingCNN This MorningwithKaitlan CollinsandPoppy Harlow, both of whom had nothing but kind words to say about him in their first broadcast since his exit, according toDeadline. “He was one of the first anchors on CNN to have me on his show. That’s something I’ll obviously never forget,” Collins said. Harlow called him “one of my first friends here at CNN.”

In the end, the author says the details he left out of his book came down to the admiration he has for those he worked with. “I was being protective of my former colleagues and dear friends because I think they have had enough drama,” he tells PEOPLE. “I know they’re going to prosper and do really well.”

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The new book is a follow-up to the news anchor’s 2021 bookThis Is the Fire.In it, he discusses his religious upbringing in the deep South and his rise to acclaim as a television journalist, using his faith as a guiding point to tell his story.

Lemon says the important women in his life wereat the forefront of his mindwhile penning his newest, too. “All of these women who have held me in their bosom and comforted me and have always had my back,” he tells PEOPLE. “I wanted to make sure that they understood that I love them and that all the stuff that they were reading about me was not true [and make sure that the people who had supported me the most, which is women, especially Black women, knew that I had their backs.”

source: people.com