Howard Stern recently commented on his SiriusXM radio show regarding the firing of Don Lemon from CNN and Jeff Shell from NBCUniversal. He stated that Lemon and Shell were lucky to have lost their jobs simultaneously as Tucker Carlson from Fox News.
According to The New York Post, Stern argued that Carlson’s exit drew public attention away from the scandals surrounding Lemon and Shell, making their firings less newsworthy. He went on to say that if Carlson had not been fired on the same day, the releases of Lemon and Shell would have garnered much more attention.
“I’ll tell you what happened. Tucker Carlson got fired, and CNN called a quick meeting, said, ‘Hey listen, let’s go fire Don Lemon,’” Stern responded. “’ And let’s get rid of Jeff Shell [at NBC] too because now is the time to get rid of everybody, ‘cause no one’s going to make a big deal about it.’”
Stern’s co-host, Robin Quivers, agreed with his assessment and speculated that CNN and NBC may have rushed to announce their respective firings after hearing about Carlson’s departure from Fox News.
“Jeff Shell’s so lucky and so is Don Lemon, because Tucker Carlson getting fired on the same day you get fired — you barely make news, as no one will even notice,” Stern added.
It was announced on Monday that Fox News had “agreed to part ways” with Carlson, who had been hosting the network’s 8 p.m. time slot. Shortly after, CNN announced Lemon’s firing, citing several high-profile incidents, including controversial comments about GOP presidential candidate Nikki Haley. Lemon claimed to have been “stunned” by the news and said CNN’s top brass never contacted him directly, a claim that CNN denied.
Shell’s firing was announced on Sunday, before Carlson’s exit, due to an investigation into a complaint of inappropriate conduct. An attorney for CNBC International’s Hadley Gamble confirmed that her client had filed a complaint accusing Shell of sexual harassment and sex discrimination.
Some pundits believe the firing of Carlson overshadowed the firings of Lemon and Shell, which might have received more attention if they had occurred on a different day.
Demetri Ravanos is a columnist and features writer for Barrett Media. He is also the creator of The Sports Podcast Festival, and a previous host on the Chewing Clock and Media Noise podcasts. He occasionally fills in on stations across the Carolinas in addition to hosting Panthers and College Football podcasts. His radio resume includes stops at WAVH and WZEW in Mobile, AL, WBPT in Birmingham, AL and WBBB, WPTK and WDNC in Raleigh, NC.
You can find him on Twitter @DemetriRavanos or reach him by email at DemetriTheGreek@gmail.com.
