Ex-CNN anchor Don Lemon says he is quitting X over new terms of service

Left-leaning former CNN anchor Don Lemon said Wednesday he is quitting Elon Musk’s social media platform X — blaming the site’s new policy for all legal disputes to be heard in Texas. Lemon — who is currently suing Musk in California after having his show on X canceled by the mogul — claimed the upcoming switch in the terms of service would hamper free speech.“I once believed that it [X] was a place for honest debate and discussion, transparency and free speech, but I now feel it does not serve that purpose,” Lemon told his 1.5 million followers on X in a video. X’s new terms of service, which take effect Friday, mandate that all lawsuits be filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas – not the Western District of Texas, where the company is headquartered.Ten of the 11 active judges in the Northern District were appointed by a Republican president, compared to six of the 11 judges in the Western District, according to Georgetown University law professor Steve Vladeck.Lemon quoted a report in The Washington Post, which said X’s new policy “ensures that such lawsuits will be heard in courthouses that are a hub for conservatives, which experts say could make it easier for X to shield itself from litigation and punish critics.”“I think that speaks for itself,” Lemon said, before plugging his YouTube, TikTok, Facebook, Instagram and Bluesky accounts. Representatives for X did not immediately respond to requests for comment.Users on X were quick to criticize Lemon for fleeing the platform.“Don lemon leaving X because he can’t district shop for radical judges when he sues small accounts,” one user wrote.Another suggested Lemon was leaving X because it “no longer censors.

I cannot compete in the arena of ideas, therefore, I am leaving.MSM [mainstream media] creating their own extinction: that was easy.”A third user seemed to suggest Lemon was abandoning X over his contentious relationship with owner Elon Musk...