Don Lemon Claims CNN Knew Donald Trump Was 'Playing Them Like Puppets' But 'It Was Good for Business'

Former CNN host Don Lemon claimed the network knew President Donald Trump was "playing them like puppets," but they let it slide since he delivered massive television ratings.

Lemon made these remarks during an appearance on Trevor Noah's podcast, "What Now?" The discussion focused on Trump's strategic understanding of media dynamics during his political rise.

Noah pointed out that Trump capitalized on media psychology by calling into morning shows rather than appearing in person.

This created an illusion of extreme importance, forcing hosts to sit and listen intently to his phone calls.

“By the way…did you guys at CNN ever know that [Trump] was playing you guys like puppets? Did you ever figure it out at some point?” Noah asked.

Responding to Noah's assessment, Lemon agreed with the power of this media manipulation.

“Oh, yeah,” Lemon answered. “I think, honestly, they may have known somewhere in the beginning, but it was good for business. Do you remember [former CEO of CBS] Les Moonves? He goes, ‘Trump is bad for the country, but he’s good for business.'”

Noah agreed, adding, “And [former CNN President] Jeff Zucker said, ‘Donald Trump is many things, but one thing I’ll tell you is, he’s a one-man ratings wrecking ball machine.’ Same with, I think it was Roger Ailes, who called Trump…when Fox was fighting with Trump, Roger Ailes was phoning Trump, and he’s like, ‘Yo, I know we’re beefing, but come on the show, man.’ Let me tell you something, Donald Trump is a media genius.”

Lemon acknowledged that CNN executives and producers were fully aware they were being used to boost viewership, conceding that Trump played the network effectively.

“I tell you, Jeff got hip to it really early, but he never told us what to say,” Lemon said. “The only thing that he would tell us is, when we were doing interviews, when he allowed us to do interviews, is just, ‘Let him talk and fact check.’ You can ask him anything. It’s all in the way you ask the question…Or you compliment him before. ‘You’re a marketing genius. Now, this one thing I don’t understand because it didn’t quite go over well with your supporters. What happened?’ And then you’re in.”

Lemon, who now works as an independent journalist after leaving corporate media, summarized the phenomenon by acknowledging Trump's innate understanding of how to dominate news cycles and saying he knew he was going to win in 2016 because of that.

“So, I would get The Washington Post, The New York Times. Sometimes, they would send me just for fun, the company, like The New York Post, all of it. So, I opened these newspapers, and Donald Trump is on the front page. And then I opened the real estate section,” Lemon recalled. “Donald Trump is in the real estate section. Then I opened the editorial section. There’s Donald Trump. And then, whatever. And I was like…'Well, where is Hillary Clinton?' And I said, 'This man is going to win…because he’s everywhere.'"