After Nikki Haley’s remarks, Don Lemon will receive “formal training” before returning to his Wednesday CNN show
The ‘CNN This Morning’ host has been off the news network since his comments about Haley last Thursday.
Embattled CNN Don Lemon, the host of This Morning, will return to the program on Wednesday, CNN CEO Chris Licht informed staff in a memo on Monday.
Lemon, who resigned from the news network’s fledgling morning show amid controversy over his remarks about Nikki Haley, will engage in formal training before his return, according to Licht, though no specifics on the kind of training he would do were given.
I had an honest and insightful conversation with Don while we were sitting down. He has agreed to continue to listen and learn while also taking part in formal training. We take this situation very seriously,” Licht wrote in a memo that The Hollywood Reporter was able to obtain on Monday evening.
“It is important to me that CNN balances accountability with fostering a culture in which people can own, learn and grow from their mistakes. To that end, Don will return to CNN This Morning on Wednesday,” Licht added.
A CNN rep declined to comment.
Last Thursday on CNN This Morning, Lemon was discussing Haley’s comments that there should be a mental competency test for any politician over age 75. (Both President Joe Biden and fellow Republican candidate Donald Trump are over the age of 75.)
While discussing her remarks, Lemon said that the former South Carolina governor, who is 51, wasn’t “in her prime.”
“Nikki Haley isn’t in her prime, sorry,” Lemon said on Thursday’s show. “A woman is considered to be in their prime in 20s and 30s and maybe 40s. If you Google ‘when is a woman in her prime,’ it’ll say 20s, 30s and 40s.”
Lemon later attempted to retract his remarks on Twitter in response to strong criticism. He tweeted, “As colleagues and loved ones have pointed out, the reference I made to a woman’s ‘prime’ this morning was inartful and irrelevant, and I regret it. “A woman’s age neither defines her personally nor what she does professionally. Every day, the numerous women in my life demonstrate this.
In a daily editorial call at the news network on Friday, Lemon apologized to his coworkers.
A person with knowledge of the situation said that Lemon took Presidents Day off from work, adding that it was not planned in advance of the events of last week but related to the holiday. Friday was Lemon’s day off as well, but that had been scheduled before Thursday’s on-air comments that landed him in hot water.