Left-leaning former CNN anchor Don Lemon said Wednesday he is quitting Elon Musk’s social media platform X — blaming the site’s new policy for all legal disputes to be heard in Texas.
Lemon — who is currently suing Musk in California after having his show on X canceled by the mogul — claimed the upcoming switch in the terms of service would hamper free speech.
“I once believed that it [X] was a place for honest debate and discussion, transparency and free speech, but I now feel it does not serve that purpose,” Lemon told his 1.5 million followers on X in a video.
X’s new terms of service, which take effect Friday, mandate that all lawsuits be filed in the US District Court for the Northern District of Texas – not the Western District of Texas, where the company is headquartered.
Ten of the 11 active judges in the Northern District were appointed by a Republican president, compared to six of the 11 judges in the Western District, according to Georgetown University law professor Steve Vladeck.
Lemon quoted a report in The Washington Post, which said X’s new policy “ensures that such lawsuits will be heard in courthouses that are a hub for conservatives, which experts say could make it easier for X to shield itself from litigation and punish critics.”