In Washington, Democratic politicians are calling for a congressional investigation, while in New York; the Writers’ Guild is asking New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) for a state probe. No, the issue is not the use of the autopen by Biden staff to carry out presidential functions or the crisis in public education. No, it is the cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” by CBS.
The outrage over the show’s cancellation is the latest example of presumed entitlement from the left, which suggests that the government, universities, and corporations should subsidize their preferred news and entertainment. Call it the NPR syndrome.
I wrote this weekend about the withdrawal of the government subsidy for NPR and the outrage of its overwhelmingly white, affluent, and liberal audience. Democrats in Congress and NPR’s shrinking listeners were appalled that the American taxpayers would not be required to fund the overwhelmingly liberal outlet. It appears that they are entitled to such federal money even though NPR is dropping in both its audience and revenues.
The outrage of Democratic politicians is hardly surprising. Like NPR, The Late Night Show was used to amplify Democratic talking points. Some of those objecting the loudest were favored guests. Indeed, the show had long ago traded the comedic stylings of prior guests like George Carlin and Don Rickles for the knee-slapping standups of Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D., Mass.) and Sen. Adam Schiff (D., Cal.).
As Joe Concha recently noted, Warren, 76, appeared 16 times during the show’s ten-year run.
He offered a funereal opening after Trump’s election:
Colbert turned his monologues into diatribes against Donald Trump, Republicans, and most everyone to the right of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D., NY), another regular guest. Socialist Bernie Sander (I., VT) was one of Colbert’s most frequent guests followed by figures such as CBS anchor Gayle King (14 appearances), CNN anchor Jake Tapper (12 appearances), and MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow (8 appearances). Note figures like Tapper had their own collapsing ratings but were still regulars for Colbert.
It did not matter that over half of this country is conservative or libertarian or that over 77 million Americans voted for Trump.
This cringeworthy video is effectively what the audience saw every night as Colbert sought to repackage comedy with orthodoxy:
Sen. Elizabeth Warren wrote on X that “America deserves to know if his show was canceled for political reasons.” She is right but an investigation is the last thing that liberals should want.
While many are pushing the false claim that the Late Show was a roaring success and number one among late night talk shows, the fact is that Colbert had run the show into the ground.
As Charles Gasparino discussed recently, the show was imposing “punishing losses — pegged between $40 million and $50 million a year” on Paramount at a time when the parent company was trying to sell CBS.
Colbert publicly slammed his employer on the show in settling a case with Trump for $16 million.
However, Colbert seemed more obsessed with pushing his political message than ratings.
Media companies are not in the habit of cancelling profit-making, successful shows, particularly not CBS which has just two prime time shows in the Top 15.
The fact is that Colbert was over paid and underperforming.
Colbert was reportedly pulling in between $15-$20 million as his show was losing $40 million a year. The show had over 100 staffers and cost $130 million to produce.
Advertisers had fled the show, clearly seeing Colbert’s shrinking audience as not a draw for spots. It is a pattern seen on the other largely left-leaning shows.
As Concha noted: “late-night shows on ABC, NBC, and CBS earned $439 million in ad revenue in 2018 combined, but just $220 million in 2024. That’s a 50% decline in less than seven years.”
In comparison, Greg Gutfeld had long trounced Colbert and the other late night shows with a relatively small staff and budget. Viewers were flocking to Fox for his content as the other late night show with a conservative perspective.
Yet, there remains the outrage. Liberal politicians and viewers seem to believe that they are entitled to shows, movies and news programs that maintain their echo chamber. Likewise, celebrities such as Rachel Zegler cratered their movies with controversial political declarations.
Now, despite losing tens of millions of dollars a year, liberals seem to believe that Paramount should subsidize an unfunny show with declining viewership. It is the same mentality of Washington Post writers who were outraged when their new editor told that that they were losing money and “people are not reading your stuff.” They expected billionaire Jeff Bezos to run the Post like a vanity project regardless of their losses or that they were primarily writing for each other. They were wrong just as Colbert was wrong.
Colbert believed that he could tailor his show to less than half of the country and bring in a slew of liberal politicians and media figures who were themselves losing elections and ratings. I cannot imagine why that business plan would fail.
The Democrats are the party of the future, the hope and change of all Americans, and the party for the
young andand over the hill gang. because nothing screams establishment like Stephen Colbert’s viewing audience.IOW, CBS killed off Colbert’s dog and pony circus because his viewing audience are just a heart beat away from entering the Dantes 9th Circle of Hell or Purgatory, depending on whether they’re authentic Catholics
😉
The average age of a Colbert viewer is 68, which perhaps says more about CBS’ audience than it does Colbert’s
https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/stephen-colbert-late-show-ends-future-1236319676/
I can remember back to a time when Colbert was on the Daily Show in the late nineties, around the same time as Talk Soup and Viva Variety. His show-partner was a chick named Beth something. She talked about bearded clams with Boy George.
My message to all those politicians: It’s not like they cancelled “60 Minutes”.
Broadcast TV is dying. It’s audience is a fraction of what it was just a decade ago. Streaming killed it. No network can afford to carry a show that looses tens of millions a year. It’s that simple.
Joe Rogan has as many viewers as CNN.
I’m old enough to be nostalgic for the late nite Jack Paar show (1957 – 1967), an urbane, zany 90 minutes succeeded by Carson. (Enjoyed The Great Carsoni schtick). We’ll never see that breed again.
Thankfully. Go back in your time machine old timer.
Hey, ageist snot-nosed POS: You would appear to lack nuance. Perhaps you’d like to see “old-timers” euthanized? Or are you a gutless slob of an incel who vents his hostilities while hiding behind a keyboard?
@Anonymous
You seem to be confused about who actually has the money and the power in this scenario: let me tell you, it isn’t you living with your parents or them subsidizing your life at a distance. Whatever. The grown-ups that actually create society will carry on. And likely without you. So figure out what the heck YOU are going to do in the future. I know that’s likely a delayed response when temporary security is brought by a troll farm, or OnlyFans, but that ain’t gonna work when you are 50, when you’ll still be here, and the people that coddled you are gone forever. I can only predict an, ‘Oh, sh*t.’, moment. and the old fall-backs just aren’t going to work anymore.
You are going to be viewed as nothing more than a nuisance in the coming future. 🤷🏻♂️
Great post, James! 👍 👍
Someone is maaaaddddd…
The Late Show had 220 employees. That’s pretty absurd in this day, or even a prior one like The Tonight Show.
I don’t think Paramount will say more than they have, but maybe an insider will whistleblow. Would it be a surprise if the shrinking audience calculation was something like: “The Late Night comedy audience became fractured into separate left and right brands of humor….Colbert addressing the left-leaning side. That era is now in the past. Americans want the comedy audience reunited under a centrist, non-partisan theme (e.g., Bill Maher). If that’s the competition, then that’s where we’ll be looking for new show runners, comedy formats and personalities.
JT has become the master obfsucator. Here is how the NJ federal prosecutors office is going…
“Case in point, the Times’ Jonah E. Bromwich and Tracey Tully wrote Habba “granted a rare private meeting” with attorneys for Eliyahu Weinstein who was facing a 24-year sentence for investment fraud without inviting the attorneys handling the case.”
Yea, the same lawyer that lost trumps sexual abuse case. Alina Habba. Remember that name. Trumps losingest lawyer.
Hey, cut it out. How do you expect MAGA to work if we select competent people for important jobs.
Not everyone has access to true geniuses like Crackhunter Biden. Smartest person that Vegetable Biden knows.
Remind me, when is Trump due to get released from prison? Yeah, thought so. Some loser lawyer.
As Colbert’s friend, Jimmy Kimmel, put it once: “Not good riddance — just riddance.”
OT
IN CONTEXT
Donald Trump intimated that one may “grab ’em by the p—y” in 2005.
Sharon Stone displayed her p—y to the whole world in Basic Instinct, 1992.
And Larry Flint published Hustler in 1974.
Are you actually saying because one woman shows her body, any male anywhere gets to grope any woman they want. You are correct that DJT thought so. Do you think that way as well?
Did you ever curse or encounter a girl in your youth? Tell the truth now. The truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God.
“In Washington, Democratic politicians are calling for a congressional investigation, while in New York; the Writers’ Guild is asking New York Attorney General Letitia James (D) for a state probe. No, the issue is not the use of the autopen by Biden staff to carry out presidential functions or the crisis in public education. No, it is the cancellation of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” by CBS.”
The outrage everyone is feeling is the Trump administration cover up of the Epstein files. Either Turley is in the files or he’s in the “nothing-to-see-here” crowd because he approves off child molestation.
There is no cover up, unless you really believe that the Trump administration would cover up the perversions of leftist icons. There’s just no there there, much like with you.
You’re perhaps one of these “court of public opinion” fans, who no longer see the point of preserving the privacy guardrails built into the 4th Amendment? Trump is right that “a list of Epstein’s associates is not something the government is obliged to publish, since it leads to guilt by association”. Where Trump is wrong is that, with possession of key video and photo evidence, the FBI doesn’t have any particular obligation to forward evidence of state sex crimes committed by Epstein associates to the State’s authorities. “If it’s not a federal crime, we’re not going to do anything” seems to be the unstated policy, which is corrupt and elitist-shielding.
So where was that outrage when Obama and Biden covered up Epstein for years? Your faux outrage is not impressive.
Anon – 3:01pm It sounds like you’ve convinced yourself of your own democrat projection ……. it’s amazing that you fools don’t reflect upon your own psycho-babble.
Pay attention to the obvious – https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/31f8fd8e959cece8ca9598ad06ca84512b909f7112e2575c8d1b18b3c516621f.jpg
From what I’ve seen of Colbert’s content, it is not funny, it is cringy (as with that idiotic “Vaccine” dance), and it is driven by politics rather than entertainment. If left-wingers want him to stay on the air, fine, but let them pay for it. As with NPR and CPB, they always want their propaganda paid for by others. They need to grow up into mature adults and realize that’s not how things work. Things did work that way for a time – just as with the Washington Post – but inevitably if a private business venture is losing a great deal of money, and it lacks government subsidies, it will stop.
Driven by politics?
What late night was never driven by politics?
You have to go back to the last century for Johnny Carson and Steve Allen.
I remember those shows – Johnny Carson, Jay Leno – where there was no overt political agenda, no obvious leaning in favor of one political party. It was just humor and levity. It brought the country together. It kept good ratings, and stayed on the air. Then . . . late night TV became Left-night TV.
http://prageru.com/video/why-are-so-many-good-things-being-destroyed
Still they took shots at politicians. Not knowing their politics of course makes it seems like good clean fun. It never was. One off color joke struck in the minds of millions of stupid Americans, that affected votes. But you were how old back then 70, maybe? You were and are still senile.
oldmanfromkansas:
I couldn’t agree more.
*.
Colbert could get a you tube channel. No cost and the minority can watch it.
What you have is the minority thinks money should be taken from successful shows just as women’s golf wanted men’s golf money or soccer etc. They think it shouldn’t be dollar driven. It should be minority driven equally to majority and equalized with majority money as a democracy or they’ll wander off into marginalized. They will not conform.
Not that I agree because cringe in most cases is cringe and no one should be exposed.
He can always put his show onto Substack or OnlyFans.
Good riddance to bad rubbish. I suspect that this “cancellation”, seeing as how it’s scheduled for May of 2026, is a ploy to drive ratings. If CBS was serious about saving money they should have canned him yesterday. It’s all See BS, BS.
2 weeks notice
He must have a contract until May 2026. It would cost too much to cancel him before then – unless he violates the contract. If he does, then they can cancel him tomorrow. So, he can stay on he air for almost another year, and then move his show, with a much smaller staff, to OnlyFans.
Is America a Republic or a Democracy that’s a very slippery glide in determination of America? I thought, is America really either or both, or what now exists as a Democratic Duopoly, two parts of the same political philosophy controlling the lever of government, elected, and the bureaucratic state of appointed or employed citizens. I’m not sure the elected democrats control the rudder; they may just be the Court Jesters of the comedic tragedy promoted by their bureaucratic overlords’ and their baubles (trinkets). They gewgaw about the beautiful ornament of Socialism, how society is greedy (only others that is), and the glorious idea that state control is the best option to address their failed attempts at rudder control. Then I reasoned, maybe just maybe the elected citizens’ from above have lost control of the rudder, and their direction is now controlled by the wind blowing from the bureaucrats gasping utterances.
“…. Ground Control to Major Tom
Your circuit’s dead, there’s something wrong….”
David Bowie
There are six kinds of Quark’s and many kinds of Quacks, it’s easy to decipher that the Democrats are quacked, just look for stupid!
As Rush would say, “For those from Yorba Linda: Up, down, charm, strange, top and bottom” AKA: Flavors
George W
Is a truck different from a vehicle? No, a truck is a type of vehicle. A republic is a type of democracy.
Our Constitutional Republic was never defined or intended as a “democracy”, but of course, you already know that. There is no mention of it in our founding documents.
bOT, not really because it seems much coming from the left should be coming from the Babylon Bee, much like the Professor’s column today.
Obama says young men need gay role models and friends
https://justthenews.com/accountability/media/obama-says-young-men-need-gay-role-models-and-friends?utm_source=daily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter
Young men (and women) need friends instead of phones.
I’ll bet you’re failed parent. Why else would you be here spouting nonsense.
Once again, your lack of intellectual discipline exposes more than just ignorance. It suggests a deeper disorder, likely shaped by how you live, what you tolerate, and how little you demand of yourself. If you’re fortunate enough to grow old, perhaps even become a grandparent, I hope you have the courage to look back at exchanges like this and recognize your pattern of failure, not just in argument, but in character.
Obama is the mandella effect. You only think he exists.
OT: It’s hard to watch the left at work. One would think the below article was from the Babylon Bee.
California legislation would fine stores for theft of their shopping carts
https://justthenews.com/nation/states/center-square/ca-bill-would-fine-stores-theft-their-shopping-carts?utm_source=daily&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=newsletter
It’s been pointed out by many writing about the demise of Colbert’s show that none of the people praising him and protesting his cancellation ever seem to mention comedy. Maybe down deep they know his show was never about comedy. But it is funny how they are going on about him “speaking truth to power” and so on.
As for the Writers Guild wanting James to investigate “potential wrongdoing at Paramount”, the network is a private corporation and if they wanted to “censor” Colbert there is no law they would be breaking and no legal basis for James getting involved. The Guild’s desire to wrap Colbert’s cancellation around Trump is funny too, because even if Paramount did it to curry favor with Trump, as is being alleged, what law did that break and how could Trump be culpable for it? But of course James will involve her office in this in some way, because it is just too tempting and because she will want to curry favor with the leftists who want her to take action, but misusing her office for that might just make her culpable.
Pocahantas doesn’t need to waste one dollar of taxpayer money on an investigation, she needs only to read Turley’s column to get her question answered.
Fauxcahontas want an investigation to be done, she should paid for it out of her own pocket, no one else’s.
A least they will graduate with a marketable skill, unlike the rest.
https://www.thecollegefix.com/uw-madison-gives-1-1-million-in-student-fees-to-club-promoting-ethical-porn-pole-dancing-class
Colbert should move his show to public television and fund it with fund raisers. See how long that lasts.
As far as “social safety nets” I’m afraid there will always be a need for one. Without it those who benefit from it will meet their needs to feed themselves by taking what they “need” from your house. You have to think of it as “Mafia fire insurance”.
He could do that, but not with 100 staffers. Maybe 5 max.
What? The left loony pols and pundits can’t make it through a week without a virtual anus-tonguing from Stephen Colbert? Because to me, that seems to be the only thing he has any talent for.