Don Lemon is one of the mainstays of CNN News and he’s often at the forefront of covering the shifting sands of US politics.

Who is Don Lemon?

Early life

Born in 1966, Lemon grew up in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. He was educated at Baker High School before attending Brooklyn College in New York City where he majored in broadcast journalism.

Career

During his college years, Lemon worked as a news assistant at WNYW in New York City. Early journalism roles included WBRC in Alabama, WCAU in Philadelphia, and KTVI in St Louis, before joining NBC.

Lemon moved across to CNN in 2006, where his career has continued to progress – making him one of the most prominent gay journalists in American news.

Unafraid of being a bit controversial, Lemon opened his news broadcast on 11 January 2018 with the statement – “This is CNN Tonight, I’m Don Lemon. The President of the United States is racist.”  In hindsight, this now seems less controversial.

The memoir

In his memoir, released in 2011, Lemon revealed that he had been the victim of sexual abuse as a child.

Lemon had first revealed this publicly during a news interview on CNN in 2010:

During the interview, Lemon said – “You want me to tell you what got my attention about this? And I’ve never admitted this on television: I am a victim of a paedophile when I was a kid — someone who was much older than me.”

The partner

Lemon introduced his partner Tim Malone to the world live on air during CNN’s New Year’s Eve broadcast on 1 July 2018.

Following the broadcast, Lemon clarified that while Malone had been at the bar for the broadcast the year earlier, they were already dating at that point.

The couple announced their engagement via Instagram in April 2019.