Column: Stephen Colbert’s swan song is zeitgeist moment
There’s a great deal of joyful satisfaction from the right, and a lot more sorrow from the left, over the termination of “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
Donald Trump heads the group that takes delight in other people’s misfortunes. He gleefully expressed his satisfaction on social media about Colbert getting fired, stating, “I couldn’t be happier! His talent was even less than his ratings.” He also hinted that Jimmy Kimmel might be next, implying that Kimmel has even less ability than Colbert. It is striking that a president who promised to eradicate “cancel culture” during his campaign shows no qualms about embracing it when it suits him.
The enthusiasm from the right is just as great, coming from the opposite side. They praise Colbert as a brave martyr for freedom of speech and challenging authority. As Chris Hayes of MSNBC put it, “It’s not too much to say that a true measure of a free society lies in whether comedians can joke about the nation’s leader on television without facing consequences.
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CBS canceled it due to financial reasons, which was a tough call amidst the difficulties in the late-night scene.
Essentially, it seems that both parties concur that Stephen Colbert’s termination from his show was due to political reasons. The left believes this move was unjust and questionable. This viewpoint stems from the suspicion that CBS’s parent company Paramount has been endeavoring to appease the administration in order to secure approval for the sale of the network to Skydance Media. Shari Redstone, the owner of Paramount, reportedly agreed to a settlement in Trump’s lawsuit against “60 Minutes,” which Colbert had criticized just days prior as a “big fat bribe.” Critics argue that Colbert’s dismissal may have been a sweetener in this deal.
It seems to me that the theory makes sense, considering when the decision was made and how it was revealed. If they had planned this ahead, why not announce it during the 2025 upfronts and start selling ads simultaneously with the wind-down? In fact, such a move has been common practice in similar situations before.
However, it’s important to note that Colbert’s detractors on the right side of the political spectrum also raise valid concerns. By making his show highly politicized and partisan, he often focused excessively on his Trump “resistance” persona, potentially alienating half of the potential national audience. His preference for conventionally liberal politicians was evident in his choice of guests – as exemplified when he announced the show’s cancellation, his first guest was California Sen. Adam Schiff, a man whose humor might not be universally appreciated even if struck with a pie.

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Commentary: Stephen Colbert’s ‘Late Show’ is canceled, but he won’t go quietly into that goodnight
On Thursday, CBS disclosed that ‘The Late Show with Stephen Colbert’ is set to conclude in 2026. This announcement, whether intentional or not, aligns with Paramount’s efforts to be acquired by Skydance at this juncture.
It’s worth noting that both liberal and conservative perspectives have their flaws. The notion that CBS terminated Colbert’s show solely for political reasons is questionable, given that they are not just firing him, but canceling the entire “Late Show” and returning the time slot to local affiliates. If the goal was to appease Trump, they could have replaced Colbert with comedians like Shane Gillis or Andrew Schulz, who are known for their humor and popularity among younger audiences. However, the show was reportedly losing around $40 million annually. Even if CBS hired someone at a quarter of Colbert’s salary ($15 million), they would still be in the red.
On the one hand, some, including Trump, have highlighted that Greg Gutfeld’s show on Fox News outperforms its competitors on the established networks in terms of ratings. This is accurate, but it doesn’t mean that Gutfeld is any less biased than Colbert, Kimmel, or Jimmy Fallon.
It’s also accurate to note that famous hosts from past times such as Steve Allen, Jack Paar, Johnny Carson, Jay Leno, and Conan O’Brien typically steered clear of extreme political views. However, the idea that a less politically charged host could attract similar audiences today is based on a misunderstanding of causality. In other words, it’s not necessarily because the host is apolitical that they would draw large audiences; rather, it might be the opposite.

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The termination of the ‘Late Show’ series is a significant setback for a television format that was once cherished, as it seems to have fallen out of favor and experienced a decline in revenue from advertisers.
In that period, the hosts were a reflection of times past, when an extensive range of Americans, regardless of political affiliations, enjoyed similar cultural content. The hosts shared a common trait with news channels and newspapers; they had a significant financial motivation to maintain balance, thus not antagonizing sizable portions of their audience or sponsors. However, that era has ceased to exist, and it’s no longer returning.
Currently, media platforms are focusing on attracting smaller, engaged audiences they can profit from by providing content tailored specifically for them. For instance, there’s an audience for Colbert and Gutfeld, but the factors that keep 2-3 million viewers hooked nightly cause the other 330 million potential viewers to gravitate towards different content. The “Late Show” model and budget are not feasible with such large viewer numbers.
Traditional cable television, with Fox as its leader, ignited political division in news viewing habits. However, cable itself contributed to the fragmentation of mainstream culture. Streaming and podcast services, spearheaded by YouTube, are accelerating this trend to the extent that media consumption is now tailored to individual preferences (advances in artificial intelligence could soon make it highly personalized).
The nighttime model thrived in an era dominated by limited viewing options, but those times have passed and they won’t return.
X:@JonahDispatch
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2025-07-22 20:31