The Shadiest Jabs Don Lemon And Megyn Kelly Have Thrown At Each Other

Political commentators Don Lemon and Megyn Kelly are known for being outspoken, which has landed them in hot water many times in the past. Lemon — a former CNN host — had a long stint at the network before his firing in 2023 for making sexist comments on air about former Governor of South Carolina Nikki Haley. He didn’t leave quietly, either, writing in a since-deleted tweet, “After 17 years at CNN I would have thought someone in management would have the decency to tell me directly,” according to Page Six.

Meanwhile, Kelly showed her shady side by defending the use of blackface on her NBC show “Megyn Kelly Today.” NBC consequently canceled the conservative pundit’s show, announcing, “‘Megyn Kelly Today’ is not returning.” Now, Kelly hosts her own show on SiriusXM, where she still manages to insult people. On February 23, she applauded MSNBC for canceling Joy Reid’s show, writing on X, formerly Twitter, “Remember when Joy Reid laughingly mocked ‘white women tears’ as pathetic and offensive to her? Who’s crying now, Joy? Good riddance to the absolute worst person on television, and shame on NBC for letting it go on this long.” Naturally, this sparked a lot of pushback, and Lemon had quite a few choice words for Kelly, with whom he’s been publicly trading barbs for years.

After Megyn Kelly made it known that Joy Reid was one of the many celebrities she couldn’t stand, Don Lemon took to his show to blast the former NBC anchor for her lack of support toward women. While sipping on a “Megyn Kelly Today” mug, he stated, “I usually don’t like to talk about her because she’s one of those people — she thrives on it. She has built the second part, of whatever, her career on being a troll.” He shared a screenshot of Kelly’s tweet about Reid and shared, “She has an axe to grind when it comes to MSNBC.” Lemon added, “She’s racist.” He showed many examples of Kelly making ignorant statements over the years, including her blackface comment, and concluded his long rant by stating, “Let me just say to Megyn Kelly, in my 30-something years as a journalist and as a person of color — ‘Go f**k yourself.'”

Unlike Kelly, Lemon showed support for Reid amid her show’s cancellation and hosted a watch party on his YouTube channel on February 24. While streaming Reid’s last show, he showed a split screen of himself and his husband, Tim Malone, watching from their living room. “Thank you for doing this, brother! SHAME ON MSNBC!!! Joy will rise from this mess,” a fan commented.

After Don Lemon was fired by CNN in 2023, Elon Musk suggested that the news anchor host his show on X. “Have you considered doing your show on this platform? Maybe worth a try. Audience is much bigger,” Musk wrote in response to Lemon’s since-deleted tweet regarding his firing. Then came the drama between Musk and Lemon. The Starlink founder withdrew his offer after his interview with Lemon — intended to be the host’s debut episode — where he was pressed on issues like X users posting hateful rhetoric and his own use of ketamine.

Kelly took the opportunity to roast Lemon on her show, saying with a laugh, “Don Lemon got fired again. Already. He’s fired before he got hired. It’s very hard for Don Lemon to keep a job.” She added, “Don’t interview your boss. That is the lesson that came out of this hot mess of an exchange between Don and Elon. Because Elon gave Don an interview to launch on his first show, and I will say, Don Lemon behaved like an a**hole who was not grateful to Elon Musk for resurrecting his career.”

Don Lemon didn’t mince words when it came to Megyn Kelly. During an appearance on the “Dean Obeidallah Show” in September 2024, he compared his foe to other political personalities — and it was not in her favor. “There’s a reason I feel that people watch Rachel Maddow. She’s a star, and not only is she a star, but she also has something to say. I want to watch people who have something to say.” He then slammed Sean Hannity’s points of view but admitted that he’s interesting to watch. However, when talking about Kelly, he stated, “Even with Megyn Kelly, who I don’t agree with anything and who has become a troll and has proven that when she said she wasn’t racist, proving — she doubles down every single day on that.” Lemon added, “I believe that she was a star. I don’t believe she’s a star now.”

It’s unclear when Lemon and Kelly’s feud started, but it seems they both actually liked each other once. “Don and I first met years ago — I gave him jazz once for making fun of me on the air, and he teased me for being too sensitive. It was the beginning of a beautiful friendship,” Kelly told Variety in 2016 as a tribute to Lemon. She continued, “I’m an anchor at the Fox News Channel who’s come out as an Independent. He’s an anchor at CNN who’s come out as a gay former Republican. We were destined to like each other.” Sometime between then and 2024, something must have happened between the two, but if they were friends once, there’s hope for the sparring media personalities to mend fences.