Don Lemon: ‘I’m Not Afraid of Criticism. I Actually Like It’

By Merrill Knox 

DonLemonCNN’s Don Lemon — who takes his fair share of criticism, both on Twitter and from other cable news anchors — does a Q+A with Jet, opening up about the stories he’s passionate about, the biggest misconceptions about him and what he really thinks of the criticism:

What’s your response to critics who say you’re too negative about the Black community?

Don Lemon: A lot of it has been taken out of context; people hear what they want to hear. I am not criticizing the Black community. I was hired by the Tom Joyner Morning Show to do commentary that makes people think. I want my audience to feel like they are learning and not being pandered to.

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Has the Twitter backlash ever caused you to reconsider your standards?

DL: I’m not afraid of criticism. I actually like it. I wish everyone could experience the level of assessment I get because it actually has made me a better person. I like to provoke the conversation and create a dialogue. That doesn’t always come from people preaching to the choir and having everyone in agreement.

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