The trial of Jussie Smollett is finally underway and the public has been made privy to some pretty surprising revelations. Namely, according to Smollett, the relationship between himself and one of the Osundairo brothers is a bit more extensive than everyone knew. But now it looks like CNN’s Don Lemon might be in the hot seat due to his possible interference and playing a major role in the Jussie Smollett case.
We all remember when Jussie Smollett set the Internet on fire with his allegations of a hate crime being committed against him on a frigid Chicago night. Currently, the former Empire star is facing three years after being charged with six felony counts of fabricating a story to the authorities. This week, Smollett took the stand to give his spicy testimony and it feels like he’s lowkey exposing some others.
For one, Jussie Smollett is alleging that he and Abimola Osundairo’s relationship leaned more onto the intimate side at times. He also claims that he did not trust Abimola’s brother, Olabinjo Osundairo, and testified that he was more of the aggressive one out of the brothers. Abimola Osundairo denies these claims and stands by his testimony that the alleged incident had been staged.
Another one of the revelations that Jussie Smollett revealed involved Don Lemon. CNN has already been dealing with issues surrounding former host Chris Cuomo, so Smollett’s allegations about Lemon seemingly place the network in a compromising position, yet again. Smollett claimed in his testimony that Don Lemon alerted the actor that authorities in the Chicago PD did not believe his account of the events that allegedly occurred on the night of January 29, 2019.
Some critics feel as though Smollett’s claims against Don Lemon can be sort of corroborated, in a way, due to a past interview that the CNN host had on Facebook Watch’s Red Table Talk in 2019. On the talk show helmed by hosts Jada Pinkett Smith, Willow Smith, and Adrienne Banfield-Norris, Lemon confessed at the time that he had been reaching out to him every day via text message at the risk of being “annoying. “Sometimes he responds, sometimes he doesn’t,” admitted Don Lemon at the time. He went on to say that Smollett’s response was that he was “not annoying.”
On social media, many began to compare this situation to the recent public firing of Chris Cuomo from CNN, noting certain similarities. One of the main reasons for this comparison is that although Don Lemon did report on the trial to end his Monday night show, he made no mention of his own involvement in the matter. Users who were privy to the information were definitely vocal on social media as it pertained to Lemon’s potential future with the network. Various opinions began to appear on social media from some who felt as though Lemon’s position at the network could potentially be compromised.
“After Jussie Smollett’s testimony that Don Lemon tipped him off to the Chicago PD not believing his story… he should be the next to get tanked from CNN,” tweeted one user. While there are those that have been heavily critical of Lemon’s coverage, some see it as Lemon being a concerned friend toward Smollett and feel as though he has been unnecessarily used in his defense. For many, it would seem as though helping someone could lead to more harm than good, like in Don Lemon’s case.
Jussie just threw Don Lemon under the bus..đŸ¤£ pic.twitter.com/6gEFkN7Z2y
— Irish☘Girl (@IrishAmerican27) December 7, 2021
The CNN reporter is not the only high-profile name to stand in support of Jussie Smollett at the time. Others such as “Empire” creator Lee Daniels and his co-stars Terrence Howard and Taraji P. Henson, current Vice President Kamaala Harris, along with Tyler Perry voiced their support. However, they have since been silent on the case along with many other supporters. One celebrity, however, has stood firm in their support of him. Fellow Empire co-star, Vivica A. Fox, has maintained that she stands by him, while also denying that he is the reason for the show’s ultimate ending on Fox. The Independence Day actress doubled down on those sentiments recently when TMZ caught up with her while at the premiere of her latest movie, True To The Game 3.
