Independent journalist Don Lemon on Thursday delivered a blistering critique of the White House press corps, urging reporters covering President Trump to “have some dignity and a backbone.” Speaking on his podcast “The Don Lemon Show,” Lemon pointed to former late-night host Stephen Colbert as a model of principled resistance.
Lemon noted that “all of the late-night shows are going dark” to honor Colbert ahead of the final episode of “The Late Show,” then pivoted sharply to the Washington press corps. “Do not let Karoline Leavitt call on the next person when you’re not finishing your question,” he said, addressing White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. “Stand up for your colleagues. Stand up for yourself. Have some dignity and a backbone.”
He called on reporters to defend each other and insist on respect when facing Trump’s insults during briefings. “Stand up for the First Amendment,” Lemon urged. “The next time someone calls one of your coworkers a piggy, the next time he calls them a loser, the next time he insults them, the next time he tells a Black woman that she knows dirt better than him, say something!”
The former CNN host was referencing a November incident aboard Air Force One when Trump told Bloomberg’s Catherine Lucey, after she asked about his ties to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, “Quiet, piggy.” Lemon also recalled Trump’s repeated attacks on women of color who asked tough questions.
Lemon praised Colbert for “telling the truth on purpose” during his 11-year run as “The Late Show” host. “And he is not done,” Lemon added. “And he is not afraid. And then wake up tomorrow and be that same thing in your own life.”
Trump’s attacks on the press have escalated amid the nearly three-month-long U.S.-Israeli conflict in Iran. Last month, he slammed The New York Times and “stupid CNN” for their coverage of “Operation Epic Fury,” calling the Times’ reporting “actually seditious, in my opinion.” Lemon’s former CNN colleague Jake Tapper pushed back, saying, “Reporting these facts isn’t treason, and it’s deranged for any president to say such a thing and potentially dangerous for the reporters he’s accusing of treason.”
In the same month Trump insulted Lucey, the White House released a so-called “media bias” tracker highlighting news reporting deemed “offenses” to the administration. The tracker monitors outlets including the Washington Post, MSNBC, CBS News, CNN, The New York Times, Politico, and the Wall Street Journal.
Colbert and other late-night hosts have regularly lampooned Trump during both his administrations, drawing Trump’s ire. Trump celebrated Colbert’s ousting with a series of Truth Social posts, including an AI-generated image of himself tossing Colbert into a dumpster. “Stephen Colbert’s firing from CBS was the ‘Beginning of the End’ for untalented, nasty, highly overpaid, not funny, and very poorly rated Late Night Television Hosts,” Trump wrote. “Others, of even less talent, to soon follow. May they all Rest in Peace!”
Lemon’s call comes amid broader concerns about press freedom and the treatment of journalists under Trump. His remarks underscore a growing frustration among media figures who argue that the White House press corps must assert itself more forcefully. For more on Trump’s foreign policy moves, see Trump Promises 'Good and Proper' Iran Deal, Blasts Obama's 2015 Pact and Netanyahu Backs Trump on Iran Pact but Insists Nuclear Threat Must Be Eliminated.
