MUST WATCH: Don Lemon throws Jussie Smollett under the bus after his hate hoax conviction

On Thursday, CNN's Don Lemon publicly condemned his old friend Jussie Smollett, calling him a liar and saying that the hoax he perpetrated made it worse for real victims of violent crimes.

Lemon had legal analyst Joey Jackson on as a guest, who supported the jury's decision to convict Smollett, and Lemon agreed, saying that Smollett was caught in various lies.

Smollett on that same day was found guilty on five of the six charges brought against him in connection with his faking a hate-based attack on himself and lying to the police about it. He is still awaiting sentencing as of the time of this writing.

Critics have noted that it has also been revealed that Lemon, who has been friends with Smollett for years, had repeatedly called him around the time of the initial incident, warning him that the Chicago police didn't believe his story and were going to investigate further:

Don Lemon's ex-colleague Chris Cuomo (who's show famously butted up against each other and they would often dialog during the hand-over) has recently been fired by the network.

CNN cited similar behavior on Cuomo's part as the reason for the firing. Cuomo had been providing inside information on the sexual harassment allegations that surfaced against his brother, Andrew Cuomo, who was forced to resign as Governor of New York State as a result.