ABC and CBS Ignore Lemon Being Asked to Leave by Church’s Pastor
1st February 2026
When it comes to the case against former CNN host Don Lemon’s alleged role in a recent takeover of a St. Paul church, the two most serious allegations against him are probably those that state he did not leave when the pastor asked him to and that he obstructed congregants as they tried to leave. However, neither ABC’s nor CBS’s Friday evening or Saturday morning news broadcasts reported on those details. While NBC mentioned the part about Lemon being asked to leave, it joined the other two in not explicitly mentioning the obstruction allegation, even if it showed footage of Lemon by the door.
CBS reporter Matt Gutman was the most vocal against Lemon’s arrest on Evening News, declaring, “Tonight, Don Lemon defiantly addressing reporters after being indicted on that federal civil rights charge.”
After showing video of Lemon at a press conference and from the day of the alleged crime, Gutman didn’t see what the big deal was, “Don Lemon says this act of conventional journalism has landed him in federal court.”
Gutman then profiled co-defendant Georgia Fort, calling her a “Minnesota journalist,” but ignoring her role with the NAACP before playing some clips from Attorney General Pam Bondi and President Trump.