Well, that didn’t take long.

X chief twit Elon Musk has canceled the platform’s deal with former CNN host Don Lemon after one taping of the show. That one taping? A “tense-at-times,” 90-minute interview that Lemon did with Musk.

In an Instagram post, Lemon wrote, “Elon Musk has canceled the partnership I had with X, which they announced as part of their public commitment to amplifying more diverse voices on their platform. He informed me of his decision hours after an interview I conducted with him on Friday. That interview will remain the premiere episode of The Don Lemon Show on Monday, March 18.”

So what happened in the interview that caused Musk to kill Lemon’s show before the first episode even aired?

Lemon said in his post, “There were no restrictions on the interview that he willingly agreed to, and my questions were respectful and wide ranging, covering everything from SpaceX to the presidential election. We had a good conversation. Clearly he felt differently. His commitment to a global town square where all questions can be asked and all ideas can be shared seems not to include questions of him from people like me.”

The interview reportedly included such topics as Musk’s ketamine use, SpaceX, free speech, and the presidential election. Some are speculating that Musk wasn’t happy about being asked about ketamine, among other topics.

Musk, however, responded this way on X when asked about what happened: “His approach was basically just ‘CNN, but on social media’, which doesn’t work, as evidenced by the fact that CNN is dying. And, instead of it being the real Don Lemon, it was really just Jeff Zucker talking through Don, so lacked authenticity. All this said, Lemon/Zucker are of course welcome to build their viewership on this platform along with everyone else.”

In an official company statement, X said, “The Don Lemon Show is welcome to publish its content on X, without censorship, as we believe in providing a platform for creators to scale their work and connect with new communities. However, like any enterprise, we reserve the right to make decisions about our business partnerships, and after careful consideration, X decided not to enter into a commercial partnership with the show.”

Interestingly, it was Musk who first reached out to Lemon about doing a show on X after Lemon was abruptly fired from CNN last April. The two announced their partnership in January and Lemon bragged how X was “the biggest space for free speech in the world.”

Lemon may no longer be doing a show in partnership with X, but that doesn’t mean he won’t do a show. He said in his statement, “Our conversation will be available on YouTube, wherever you listen to podcasts and X. This will be just the first of many episodes of The Don Lemon Show. While Elon goes back on his word, I will be doubling down on my commitment to free speech and I cannot wait to get started.”

Lemon also put out a video on X, saying, “Elon Musk is mad at me.” He then later added, “This does not change anything about the show except for my relationship with Elon and X. There’s a whole lot that went down and I’m going to tell you about it in the coming days.”

Interestingly, veteran media journalist Brian Stelter tweeted, “What went wrong in the sit-down between Elon Musk and Don Lemon? We’ll have to watch the interview to find out. A source tells me it was ‘like a bad first date;’ the two men did not vibe at all. Obviously that’s no reason to cancel a commercial partnership, however.”

One surprising thing the Lemon-Musk interview/cancellation kerfuffle ended up doing: It put Lemon back on CNN for the first time since he was fired. He went on with Erin Burnett on Wednesday night to talk about the interview. CNN aired some of the clips of Lemon and Musk.

Lemon showed one clip where Musk admitted he wasn’t enthused about sitting down for an interview. Musk said, “Don, the only reason I’m doing this interview is because you’re on the X platform and you asked for it. Otherwise, I would not do this interview.”

Lemon told Burnett that the interview with Musk was “tense at times.”

To be clear, Lemon can still post his shows on X on his own. And, his representative says Lemon still expects to be paid for the contract he signed with X. The rep, Allison Gollust, told CNBC’s Ryan Anastasio in a statement, “Don has a deal with X and expects to be paid for it. If we have to go to court we will.”

But did he actually sign a contract? Semafor’s Max Tani reports that “Lemon does not have a signed contract.”

Tani, however, added, “People close to Lemon have dismissed some of these concerns. One person familiar with the agreement pushed back on the argument that X doesn’t owe Lemon money, saying that X’s legal department took weeks to get a contract to the host’s team. Further, according to one person familiar with the deal, X’s legal team had begun selling ads on the show, and its CEO Linda Yaccarino had promoted the deal at the CES conference in January.”

In the end, we are once again reminded how fragile and thin-skinned Musk is. He goes on and on about free speech and as soon as someone says something he doesn’t like, he takes his ball — or, in this case, his social media toy — and goes home. You would think one of the richest people on the planet would be way cooler than Musk.

Clock ticking on TikTok?

OK, what’s the deal with TikTok? Well, here’s a crash course, starting with what happened Wednesday.

The U.S. House voted overwhelmingly (352-65) to force TikTok’s Chinese owner, ByteDance, to sell the video app. If ByteDance refused to sell then TikTok would be banned from app stores provided by, for example, Apple and Google in the United States.

But there’s still a way to go before this would actually happen. Even though President Joe Biden said he would sign such a bill, it’s not even known if the Senate would bring it to the floor for a vote. Many senators said they would fight it even if it did get that far.

And there are likely to be legal challenges should this even get to Biden’s desk.

So what’s the issue with TikTok?

The Associated Press’ Haleluya Hadero explains, “Lawmakers from both parties — as well as law enforcement and intelligence officials — have long expressed concerns that Chinese authorities could force ByteDance to hand over data on the 170 million Americans who use TikTok. The worry stems from a set of Chinese national security laws that compel organizations to assist with intelligence gathering — which ByteDance would likely be subject to — and other far-reaching ways the country’s authoritarian government exercises control.”

Hadero added, “TikTok has denied assertions that it could be used as a tool of the Chinese government. The company has said it has never shared U.S. user data with Chinese authorities and won’t do so if it’s asked. To date, U.S. government also has not provided any evidence that shows TikTok shared such information with Chinese authorities.”

Wisconsin Republican Congressman Mike Gallagher said on the floor before the vote that this would force “TikTok to break up with the Chinese Communist Party. This is a common-sense measure to protect our national security.”

The Washington Post’s Cristiano Lima-Strong, Jacob Bogage and Mariana Alfaro wrote, “Though TikTok is incorporated in the United States and has headquarters in Los Angeles, its ties to Beijing-based tech giant ByteDance have long triggered fears that the app could be weaponized by the Chinese government to snoop on Americans or shape their political views.”

But here’s another problem: Even if ByteDance is open to selling, a sale is likely difficult. The New York Times’ David McCabe has details on that.

CNN’s Clare Duffy also smartly notes, “One major obstacle: The bill is largely unpopular with TikTok users, many of whom also happen to be young voters who could hold major sway in the 2024 US election, which senators are keenly aware of. Some TikTok users posted videos ahead of Wednesday’s vote showing them calling their representatives and threatening to vote for alternate candidates if they voted to pass the bill.

Wednesday was an intriguing big step, but there are many more steps to go in this story.

In The New York Times’ evening newsletter, Sapna Maheshwari, who covers TikTok for the Times, told lead newsletter writer Matthew Cullen, “We are well away from a ban, which would only occur if this bill passes in the Senate and is signed into law, and then ByteDance cannot find a buyer. Even then, we could be looking at court challenges.”

Bad news for Zucker?

Jeff Zucker’s plans to buy London’s Daily Telegraph took what appears to be a major hit Wednesday when the British government moved forward with legislation that would bar foreign state ownership of newspapers and newsmagazines.

The New York Times’ Michael M. Grynbaum and Mark Landler wrote, “The move by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak would torpedo Mr. Zucker’s bid in its current form, which relies heavily on financing from investment partners in the United Arab Emirates. The use of Emirati funds caused an uproar in Westminster over foreign influence in the British media, given the outsize importance of The Telegraph and its sister publication, The Spectator, to Mr. Sunak’s Conservative Party.”

Zucker is the former head of CNN.

The Times reporters added, “Mr. Zucker’s media venture company, RedBird IMI, can now try to salvage its bid for the publications by finding new investors and diluting the Emiratis’ majority stake to a level allowed under the government’s proposed rules.”

Award-winning series

A pauper’s graveyard on the grounds of the Hinds County, Miss., jail work farm. (Ashleigh Coleman/NBC News)

Jon Schuppe, Mike Hixenbaugh and Rich Schapiro of NBC News have won the 2024 Anthony Shadid Award for Journalism Ethics for their work exposing America’s failed death notification system. The award is given by The Center for Journalism Ethics at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

The series — called “Lost Rites” — showed how authorities in Hinds County, Mississippi, were burying the bodies of missing people without notifying the loved ones still searching for them.

Kathryn McGarr, associate professor in the UW-Madison School of Journalism and Mass Communication and chair of the committee, said in a statement, “This story immediately stood out to the judges for the difficult ethical choices the reporters were making at every stage of their work as they navigated the tragedy of families whose missing loved ones had been buried without their knowledge. Schuppe, Hixenbaugh and Schapiro showed great empathy for their sources and responsibility to the dead whose stories would not otherwise have been told.”

Peyton Manning’s next big gig

Kelly Clarkson, left, and Peyton Manning. (AP Photo)

Is there anything Peyton Manning can’t do? After his Hall of Fame, two-time Super Bowl-winning playing career, Manning has carved out a very nice — and lucrative — post-playing career.

He does commercials, hosts award shows and has a well-respected and liked “Monday Night Football” alternate broadcast with his brother, Eli. And, oh, he has his own production company.

Now he will add the Olympics to his resume.

Manning will join Mike Tirico and Kelly Clarkson as hosts for NBC’s coverage of the opening ceremony of the Summer Olympics from Paris.

The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand reports that it was Tirico who approached Manning about joining NBC’s opening ceremony coverage. Tirico brought up the idea at the Kentucky Derby last May.

Manning told Marchand, “I kind of argued with him as to why he and NBC thought I was worthy. He said they were bringing in Kelly Clarkson to kind of give the perspective of a fan and wanted me to share the perspective of what these athletes are thinking about it.”

Here’s a clip of Manning, Tirico and Clarkson on “The Tonight Show” with Jimmy Fallon.

By the way, is there anything Clarkson can’t do? Aside from her amazing singing talent, Clarkson has proven to be a capable talk-show host and now will add Olympic opening ceremonies host to her impressive resume.

Media tidbits

• HBO has renewed “Real Time with Bill Maher” for two more years through 2026. That would be the show’s 24th season. Maher said in a statement, “Two more years in the dream job of a lifetime, on the network so many dream of being on — I think that’s what we call a no-brainer.”
• Another reason to shake your head when thinking about New York Jets quarterback Aaron Rodgers, who apparently is on the shortlist to be Robert Kennedy Jr.’s running mate. It’s CNN’s Pamela Brown and Jake Tapper with “RFK Jr.’s VP prospect Aaron Rodgers has shared false Sandy Hook conspiracy theories in private conversations.” If true, Rodgers just went from being occasionally quirky to being outright despicable.
• Writing for Poynter, Amy Mitchell with “As AI use grows, we must articulate ‘the enduring principles that define journalism.’”
• Could it be the end of the Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition? Front Office Sports’ A.J. Perez has the latest.
• Awful Announcing’s Ben Axelrod with “Despite their differences, Deadspin and Sports Illustrated met the same fate.”
• Media Nation’s Dan Kennedy with “Startup news leaders tell journalism students how to get that first job.”
• For the Columbia Journalism Review, Bill Grueskin with “What we learned from that long, strange lawyer’s letter to Business Insider.”

Correction

In Wednesday’s newsletter, I mentioned how 264,000 people tuned in to watch Chris Cuomo’s conversation with Tucker Carlson on Cuomo’s NewsNation show on Monday. I wrote it was the most-watched show in NewsNation history. Actually, it was the most-watched show Cuomo has done for NewsNation since joining the network in 2022. The most-watched NewsNation broadcast was a Republican debate last December, which attracted nearly 1.6 million viewers.

Hot type

Just one item today in Hot Type because I highly recommend you read it. It’s a disturbing story from The Washington Post’s Shawn Boburg, Pranshu Verma and Chris Dehghanpoor: “On popular online platforms, predatory groups coerce children into self-harm.”

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