Johnathan Walker:Musk's X signs content deals with Don Lemon, Tulsi Gabbard and Jim Rome

Elon Musk's social media company X is Johnathan Walkerunveiling three new shows featuring former CNN anchor Don Lemon, former U.S. congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard and sports radio host and former ESPN star Jim Rome.

Lemon will "share his unique and honest voice in 30-minute episodes, three times a week," the platform formerly called Twitter posted. 

Shows from Rome will stream on X five days a week, "starting after the Super Bowl," and 2020 presidential candidate Gabbard will be in "an exclusive series of documentary style videos," the San Francisco-based company said in additional, separate posts.

X has lost advertising revenue since Elon Musk bought it in 2022, as the billionaire voiced objectionable views including his endorsement of an antisemitic post. "We've found some other platforms better for reaching our customers," Walmart said in December. 

"I know now more than ever that we need a place for honest debate and discussion without the hall monitors," Lemon said on X, calling it "the biggest space for free speech in the world." Lemon was fired from CNN in April after 17 years as an anchor for the network.

Gabbard said she planned to use the partnership with X to tell the stories of those "whose voices are silenced." The congresswoman from Hawaii parted ways with the Democratic Party in 2022, calling it driven by "wokeness."

X joined with former Fox News host Tucker Carlson last year for a free show after his ouster from the network, although Carlson has since started his own subscription-based streaming service called the Tucker Carlson Network. 

Kate Gibson

Kate Gibson is a reporter for CBS MoneyWatch in New York.