Furious female staffers at CNN have threatened to quit if Don Lemon stays on-air following his sexist comments last week that Nikki Haley and women in their 40s are ‘past their prime’.
With speculation rife that the embattled host, 56, could exit the troubled network imminently, a source close to the ‘most busted name in news’ told DailyMail.com, ‘if Don doesn’t go, others have threatened to quit’.
‘People are hurt by his actions and are not going to let this go. It is like every woman over 50 in America has taken this as a personal insult. The female staffers at CNN definitely have. He needs to make his vacation a permanent one.’
Indeed, another CNN insider said ‘the women of CNN are angry. He’s made it impossible to do their jobs. He’s an embarrassment to the network and needs to go.’
When approached for comment on female staffers threatening to exit unless Lemon does, a CNN spokesperson declined to specifically address that issue.
When asked if it was true that Don Lemon is being inched towards the exit door in the wake of this latest scandal, another spokesperson for CNN told DailyMail.com, ‘it is patently false to say Don is being pushed to resign’.
However, CNN insiders are adamant, ‘CNN has been literally, flooded like a tidal wave with extremely angry and offended loyal viewers’.
‘There is not one person at CNN who that thinks that he should remain on air. He knows how badly he screwed up and he also knows that he cannot talk his way out of this one. His apology meant nothing.’
The anchor made his comments on last Thursday’s segment of CNN This morning, as he and co-hosts Kaitlan Collins and Poppy Harlow discussed Nikki Haley’s proposal that politicians ages 75 and up should face mental competency tests.
Lemon, who at 56 is five years older than Haley, 51, said the politician should tread lightly on the topic because ‘a woman is in their prime in 20s and 30s and maybe 40s.’
Lemon has made several apologies over his remarks, including sending off a tweet shortly after the show, and saying he was sorry to staff during an editorial call.
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