An on-air blunder. Don Lemon faced backlash after publicly dissing it Nikki Haley on CNN – and then benched from various broadcasts.
The 56-year-old news anchor made headlines on February 16 after making sexist comments about Haley’s age. When discussing the 51-year-old former governor of South Carolina’s bid for the presidency CNN This MorningLemon claimed that Haley was past her “prime”.
“They say that people, politicians are not in their prime,” he said, referring to the former United Nations Ambassador’s idea to implement a “mental competency test” for political leaders over 75 years of age. . Women are considered prime in their 20s, 30s and maybe even 40s.
Cohost Poppy Harlow asked his friend to clarify his stance, asking if Haley meant beyond “prime to give birth” or “prime to be president.”
Lemon continued down, answering: “If you Google, ‘when is a woman in her prime,’ it will say 20s, 30s, and 40s. … I’m not saying I agree with that so I think they should be careful about saying that [politicians aren’t in their prime].”
The comments quickly sparked controversy among viewers and political pundits — and Haley herself was quick to echo Lemon’s comments. “To be clear, I’m not calling a competency test for middle-aged CNN anchors Sexist; only for people who make laws and are 75+,” he quipped via Twitter on February 16.
Lemon’s flub sparked a heated debate on social media. “Hey ladies -@donlemon thinks women over 50 are out of date! Let’s start #primetime and list some of the things we’ve done in these last glorious years. I’ll start,” Patricia Heaton tweeted on February 17 as the former Today correspondent quit the CNN show.
Heaton, 64, went on to name some recent career highlights, from publishing his book Your Second Act: An Inspiring Story of Reinvention to produce a CBS sitcom Carol’s Second Act.
Lemon issued a statement through social media apologizing for the “irrelevant” comment on Haley’s age, but did not immediately return to the air. Sara Sidner filled in during the Feb. 20 broadcast of the network’s morning show.
According to CNN, Lemon was given the opportunity to talk to his colleagues during the company’s editorial meeting on February 17. “I’m sorry I said that,” the Transparent author told staff. “And I certainly understand why people find it misguided. When I make mistakes, I own them. And I own this, too.”
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