TRACE, THERE’S A REASON PEOPLE
WATCH TRACE GALLAGHER.
THANKS SO MUCH.
SO WE DON’T WISH ANYONE ILL
REALLY IN THE TELEVISION
BUSINESS.
IT’S A VOLATILE BUSINESS.
IT’S HARD NOT TO NOTICE THERE’S
A LOT OF DRAMA AT CNN.
FIRST, THEIR TOP STAR, CHRIS
CUOMO WAS FIRED.
AND CNN BLEW UP.
AND BRIAN STELTZER GOT CANNED.
IF THERE WAS A FIRING TO
CELEBRATE, IT WAS HIS.
EVEN WE DIDN’T CELEBRATE.
NOW TO WRECK OUR DAY, LOOKS LIKE
MANY DON LEMON, THE SOURCE OF
ENTERTAINMENT FOR MANY YEARS IS
OUT.
HE MADE THE MISTAKE OF SAYING
WOMEN OVER 50 ARE NOT THIS THEIR
PRIME.
YEAH, THEY CAN HAVE BABIES TOO.
WITHOUT TAKING SIDES IN THAT
DEBATE, THE BOTTOM LIKE IS IT
LOOKS LIKE IT’S OVER FOR DON
LEMON.
HE WAS NOT ON THE AIR TODAY,
WHICH IS BAD IF YOU’RE A TV
HOST.
>> PRESIDENT BIDEN MAKES A
SURPRISE VISIT TO UKRAINE.
KAITLYN IS LIVE IN WARSAW.
DON HAS THE DAY OFF.
>> I MEAN, NO OFFENSE TO THE
LADIES, BUT LET’S BE HONEST.
ARE WE GOING TO MISS DON LEMON?
A LITTLE BIT.
STEVE HAS COVERED TELEVISION FOR
A LONG TIME AND REALLY WELL.
HE’S THE AUTHOR OF "UNCOVERED".
HEY, STEVE.
WHAT’S GOING ON?
AGAIN, WE’RE NOT GLOATING.
I KNOW YOU WOULD KNOW THE
ANSWER.
SEEMS LIKE THE PLACE IS ON THE
WAY TO COLLAPSING.
>> YEAH, TUCKER, I WAS A
COLLEAGUE OF DON LEMON AS YOU
SAY NOT TOO LONG AGO.
IT SEEMS LIKE THERE’S BEEN A
REAL FUNDAMENTAL SHIFT AT THE
NETWORK.
STARTED ONLY THREE OR FOUR YEARS
AFTER I LEFT DURING THE TRUMP
ERA.
ONE OF THE BIGGEST EXAMPLES IN
THE TRUMP ERA THAT WENT OFF THE
RAILS, I WRITE ABOUT IT, AN
ENTIRE CHAPTER, A CHAPTER OF THE
EXPERIENCE OF OTHER PEOPLE THAT
WORKED AT THE NETWORK AND WHAT
HAPPENED THERE AS WELL.
NOW YOU HAVE DON.
DON WAS ONE OF THE STARS OF THAT
ERA OF CNN.
HE WAS A BIG PRIME TIME HOST.
HE’S BEEN RELEGATED TO THE
MORNING SHOW NOW.
AND IT’S SORT OF THIS RELIC OF
THE OLD ADMINISTRATION THAT IS
BEING -- THEY’RE TRYING TO DIG
THEMSELVES OUT.
DON WAS A BIG STAR, AN
INFLUENCER.
THIS IS ONE OF THE BIG PROBLEMS
OF THE MEDIA IN GENERAL.
DON BOUGHT HIS OWN HYPE.
I THINK THAT WHEN HE MADE THAT
COMMENT ABOUT NIKKI HALEY, HE
THOUGHT HE WAS CRITICIZING A
REPUBLICAN.
CRITICIZING SOMEONE YOU’RE
ALLOWS TO CRITICIZE.
HE DIDN’T REALIZE SHE WAS A
WOMAN.
NOW DIGGING THEMSELVES OUT OF
THIS HOLE THAT THEY BROUGHT
THEMSELVES IN TO, A LOT OF
FACTORS THAT HAPPENED DURING THE
TRUMP ADMINISTRATION.
>> DON LEMON IS DUMB AND KIND OF
CRAZY.
BUT HE’S ALWAYS BEEN AND THAT
SORT OF THE APPEAL.
IF YOU PUT SOMEONE DUMB AND
CRAZY ON TV, YOU EXPECT HIM TO
SAY DUMB AND CRAZY THINGS.
THAT’S HILARIOUS.
WHAT WAS HIS CRIME EXACTLY?
>> YEAH, I DO WONDER IN THE
OLDEN DAYS, A FEW YEARS AGO,
BACK WHEN THINGS WERE GOING SO
MUCH BETTER FOR DON LEMON AS YOU
SAY.
THIS SORT OF THING MIGHT HAVE
BEEN SWEPT UNDER THE RUG.
STACK UP WHAT HE SAID ABOUT
NIKKI HALEY AND THE THINGS THAT
HE SAID ABOUT DONALD TRUMP AND
ALL THE PEOPLE IN THE
ADMINISTRATION.
IT’S NOT EVEN CLOSE.
THERE’S A NEW MANDATE THERE.
DON IS OUT OF FAVOR BECAUSE IT’S
NOT REALLY THE DIRECTION OF THE
NETWORK.
WE SAW DURING THE TRUMP ERA AND
WE’VE SEEN SINCE THEN A TOTAL
LACK OF INTEREST.
I GET IT.
IT’S ABOUT EVERY STORY.
THEY MAKE MISTAKES AND DON’T
APOLOGIZE.
THE TRUST IN THE MEDIA GETS
LOWER AND LOWER.
CNN IS TRYING TO DIG THEMSELVES
OUT.
THEY NEED TO IMPROVE THEIR
RATINGS.
THEY’RE IN THE TANK.
DON MIGHT BE A CASUALTY OF THAT.
>> Tucker: YEAH.