Don Lemon signs off from his CNN primetime show – will move to weekday mornings

Don Lemon, one of the highest-profile openly gay news anchors on television, anchored the final edition of his primetime CNN show Don Lemon Tonight on Friday. He will be joining CNN’s morning show as a co-anchor alongside Kaitlan Collins and Poppy Harlow.

“Not goodbye, but certainly the end of an era as we sign off this last broadcast of Don Lemon Tonight, more than eight years, thousands of hours of live TV, historic moments and tough conversations,” Lemon said. “A lot happened between 10 and midnight, or later.”

“This is it, the final Don Lemon Tonight. It’s a bittersweet moment for me, but it’s not going to be a sad moment. I’m not going to be sad about it,” he said. “I’m just going to miss working with all of the great people who really work their butts off every single day to put this show on the air. So tonight, this isn’t about me, this is about you guys who are in the control room and in this studio. This is about you.”

Lemon concluded by telling viewers: “I know I was not always perfect because no one is perfect. There are immense pressures that come with this job, and in particular, this time slot at 10 p.m., when people are going to bed. So sometimes, all I could do — I’m gonna be honest with you — is just smile and just get to the commercial break sometimes.

“Sometimes it was exhausting because some of the things that we discuss here are so personal and so consuming — all-consuming. So, I hope I made you proud, and I thank you for tuning in all these years, and I hope that you’re going to join me in the morning. So, I will simply say, goodnight and I will see you soon,”

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