Host of ‘Don Lemon Tonight’ and anchor of the show ‘This Morning,’ Don Lemon is a familiar figure to television viewers. Lemon is an American journalist, who is prominently known for his work at CNN.
During the start of his career, Lemon used to work at some local television stations in places like Alabama and Pennsylvania. He used to anchor some weekend programs on those local channels and that was where Don Lemon started his career.
Before joining CNN, Lemon worked for NBC and was seen as part of their programs such as ‘Today’ and ‘NBC Nightly News.’ It was only in 2006 that Lemon joined CNN.
Currently, Lemon is going through a rough patch in his professional life, as one of his colleagues – famous investigative journalist Drew Griffin passed away due to cancer last day. Lemon was tearing up as he shared the tragic news about Drew’s demise.
Don Lemon’s Early Life And Education
Having been descended from African-American ancestry along with Creole, Don Lemon was born on March 1, 1966, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Wilmon Lee Richardson, his father, was a well-known attorney.
Richardson was very closely associated with a lawsuit that argued against the segregation of the public transport system in their hometown Baton Rouge. His mother was Katherine Marie.
Don Lemon completed his early stages of education at Baker high school, which was a public high school that was situated in the town of Baker. He was an ideal student and Lemon was selected as the class president during his senior year in school.
After completing his school education, Lemon enrolled at the Louisiana State University and he graduated from Brooklyn College in the year 1996.
He earned his degree in broadcast journalism and then went on to work for different media agencies right away. Lemons started his career in the field of journalism when he was just a student as an intern at WNYW. Later on, he also worked for Fox affiliates and also NBC affiliates in Chicago and Philadelphia.
Don Lemon – Career As A Journalist
Don Lemon started his professional career as a journalist through some local television stations located in places like Missouri, Pennsylvania, and Alabama. In his job at the firms, Lemon took up different roles like a news anchor and investigative reporter.
Further in his journalism career, Don Lemon also worked as a correspondent for NBC and also was seen as an anchor at the same firm. It was in 2003 that he began working at WMAQ-TV, which is a television station owned and operated by NBC.
He worked as a reporter and also the local news co-anchor. Don Lemon received three Emmys during his career as a local reporter at WMAQ.
His career took a complete turn as he joined CNN in September 2006. It was his time at CNN that made his face and voice familiar to ordinary viewers. While working at CNN, Don Lemon was very vocal about different issues of public significance and he had the courage to report matters without any fear of telling the truth. He has raised voices against personalities like then-president Donald Trump in his career.
Lemon constantly raised his voice against racism and the issues regarding the crimes committed by ‘far-right extremists.’ He was also very concerned about the ways of life of the African-American community in America and had strong opinions on how they could change things to improve their lives. Some of his strong opinions also landed him in some controversies too.
As his time on CNN progressed, Don Lemon earned the name of a respectable and popular journalist. Around 2014, he was a prominent figure in the field and CNN began to pilot prime-time shows which were hosted by Don Lemon. Shows like ‘The Eleventh Hour’ and ‘The Don Lemon Show’ were hosted by him.
At times, Don Lemon was chosen to lead special shows which were aired at times of sensational issues. One such program was telecasted during the time of the disappearance of Malaysian Airlines flight 370 in 2014.
Don Lemon was also very critical of former President Donald Trump and his administration’s policies. He has even openly stated that Trump is a racist and that people knew it about the president.
Don Lemon – Personal Life
Don Lemon came out as gay in his 2011 memoir titled ‘Transparent.’ Currently, Lemon is in a relationship with Tim Malone, who is a real estate agent. They met in 2017 and had been dating for quite a while. The couple made their engagement public in April 2019.
Lemon reported the signing of the Respect for Marriage Act by president Joe Biden into law from the White House along with his finance Tim Malone. Don Lemon is one f the very few openly gay black men who work in broadcasting.
In his personal life, Don Lemon has been very vocal about the traumas that he had to face in his childhood. In his memoir ‘Transparent,’ Lemon discussed issues like colorism and the sexual abuses that he had to face early in his life.
His memoir was dedicated to Tyler Clementi, who was a student who committed suicide at the age of eighteen after his roommate outed him online.
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Don Lemon – Awards And Honors
Having a successful career at a reputed media agency, Don Lemon made it to multiple lists which featured names of highly powerful and influential people from the LGBTQI+ community.
He has also received many awards for his contributions to the field of journalism. Don Lemon earned three Emmy Awards in 2006, one for ‘Life on Craigslist,’ which was a business feature about Craigslist, and the other two for ‘Journey to Africa,’ which focused on the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Africa.
He also received an Edward R. Murrow Award in 2002 for the capture of the D.C. area sniper. Don Lemon is currently one of the most influential and popular media persons from the LGBTQI+ community and in 2019, he was named one of the Pride50 at the 50th anniversary of the Stonewall riots in Greenwich Village.
Read More:- Drew Griffin, CNN Senior Correspondent Passed Away At 60 After Cancer Battle
