Don Lemon will host a no-holds-barred television talk show with a studio audience on the new CNN Plus streaming service that the cable network is billing as one where there will be “no limits to the conversation.” “The Don Lemon Show,” which will be available on the new online subscription service that is set to launch in the spring, will air weekly. It will have the host talking about “the most talkable news stories each week.” Lemon said that the format was inspired by similar talk shows from years past, including those helmed by Oprah Winfrey, Phil Donahue, and Johnny Carson. “Time now for this generation’s version of that great tradition,” Lemon said. Lemon, who hosts a nightly, 10pm two-hour-long talk show on CNN, will join Anderson Cooper as the other cable news mainstay who will try and help bolster the network’s streaming cousin. Cooper, the host of “Anderson Cooper 360,” has signed on to host a weekly parenting-themed show for CNN Plus. He will also bring his news show “Anderson Cooper Full Circle” to the streaming network. Lemon joined CNN’s primetime lineup in 2014. His show has generated better ratings than rival MSNBC among the coveted 25 to 54 age demographic, but both networks have more total viewers during those hours than CNN. WarnerMedia, the parent company of CNN and CNN Plus, recently went on a shopping spree to add big-name talent to the soon-to-be-born service in hopes of attracting viewers in the competitive streaming market. In December, veteran news anchor Chris Wallace defected from Fox News after nearly two decades to join CNN Plus. The service also added former NPR host Audie Cornish, “Desperate Housewives” star Eva Longoria, Instagram food guru Alison Roman and former NBA player-turned-social media star Rex Chapman. CNN Plus will also include original programming such as documentaries as well as libraries of popular past series including Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown; Stanley Tucci: Searching for Italy; and W. Kamau Bell’s United Shades of America.
