Timcast IRL · May 25, 2021 · 2h 0m

Timcast IRL #293 - Don Lemon FAKES Quitting CNN In Failed Stunt As Ratings TANK 77% w/Chris Barron

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Episode Recap

Timcast IRL episode 293 aired on May 25, 2021, with Tim Pool hosting alongside co-host Ian Crossland. The episode centered on media criticism, primarily focusing on CNN anchor Don Lemon's perceived publicity stunt where he announced he was leaving CNN but simply rebranded his show from 'CNN Tonight with Don Lemon' to 'Don Lemon Tonight.' The hosts discussed how the anchor had lost 77% of his viewers since January 2021 and how the network resorted to this desperate measure. Guest Chris Barron, president of Right Turn Strategies and contributor to Human Events, joined the discussion to provide conservative media analysis. The conversation explored how mainstream media outlets like CNN have declined in credibility and ratings, with references to the Babylon Bee satire site's parody of CNN. The hosts also briefly mentioned the serious topic of Dr. Fauci and the lab leak hypothesis before deciding to focus on the lighter Don Lemon story. A federal judge's ruling regarding Joe Biden's policies was also referenced as additional news context for the evening.

TL;DR

  • →Don Lemon announced he was leaving CNN but simply rebranded his show, losing 77% of viewers since January 2021
  • →Guest Chris Barron joined to discuss conservative media criticism and CNN's decline
  • →Hosts compared CNN's actions to Babylon Bee parody articles, questioning the line between satire and reality
  • →Dr. Fauci's statements on the lab leak hypothesis were briefly mentioned as serious news being overshadowed
  • →A federal judge ruling on Joe Biden's policies being racist was referenced as additional news context
  • →The discussion explored how mainstream media outlets have built their brands around political hostility, particularly toward Trump

Key Moments

  • 0:00
    Opening and News Setup
    Tim Pool opens the show, mentioning Dr. Fauci and the lab leak hypothesis before pivoting to the Don Lemon story
  • 0:31
    Guest Introduction
    Chris Barron joins the show, introducing himself as president of Right Turn Strategies and contributor to Human Events
  • 2:49
    Don Lemon Story Breakdown
    Tim reads the Fox News article about Don Lemon's fake quitting announcement and ratings collapse
  • 5:20
    Babylon Bee Comparison
    Discussion of how CNN has become so absurd that satire sites like Babylon Bee struggle to parody them
  • 6:36
    Media Industry Analysis
    Chris Barron and hosts discuss how CNN and MSNBC built their brands around anti-Trump sentiment and are now suffering
  • 7:30
    Closing Tease
    Tim mentions exclusive member bonus content and references last week's Trump conspiracy theory debunking segment

Notable Quotes

“Ladies and gentlemen, we have very serious news tonight. Dr. Fauci has come out and essentially lit a fire under lab leak hypothesis. This is very important news we must talk about. Instead, we're going to lead with Don Lemon did a failed publicity stunt pretending he was quitting CNN because his ratings are down 77%.”

— Tim Pool · opening

“Turns out it was a publicity stunt where he's like, here's what he said: 'I appreciate all the years of CNN Tonight with Don Lemon, but changes are coming and I will fill you in.' And then all they did was they changed the name of his show from CNN Tonight with Don Lemon to Don Lemon Tonight. That's it. Same time slot. Same everything.”

— Tim Pool · main discussion

“I really do think the media is one of the biggest, it's like the biggest root of the problem, or at least one large root providing nutrients to this corrupted political ecosystem and infrastructure. So we definitely got to talk about how desperate they are.”

— Chris Barron · guest perspective

“I mean, honestly, isn't there a point where CNN just recognizes that they're basically parody at this point? This is something that someone on our side would spoof saying, 'Oh, this is how ridiculous CNN would have to do.' We don't have to worry about that because CNN is actually doing it themselves.”

— Tim Pool · debate

“I think I want to try and find it. If there's that Babylon Bee CNN competition. I don't know what to look for, but I'm pretty sure they did that. And you know, there's been all of this pushback against Babylon Bee, people saying like, 'Oh, you know, PolitiFact rating.' I mean it should speak about the state of the modern democratic party and the left that people easily confuse obvious parody with the actual policies of the left.”

— Ian Crossland · panel

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