Stephen Colbert calls out CBS for blocking interview with Democratic Senate candidate James Talarico

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The Federal Communications Commission is now more strictly enforcing its rules about giving equal airtime to different political viewpoints, and this is starting to change what we see on late-night television.

Stephen Colbert started Monday’s “The Late Show” as usual, welcoming the house band and his guest, Jennifer Garner. He then playfully asked, “Anyone wondering who isn’t here tonight?”

The talk show host had planned to interview Texas state representative James Talarico, but he announced on the air that the network’s lawyers had explicitly forbidden it. They contacted the show directly to make that clear.

He went on to describe the FCC’s updated rules about equal time for political candidates, as outlined by Chairman Brendan Carr. These rules state that broadcasters who give airtime to one candidate must offer the same opportunity to their opponents, if asked. Traditionally, news programs and talk shows—especially late-night ones—haven’t been covered by these rules, largely because presidential candidates commonly appear on multiple late-night shows as part of their campaigns.

As a film and media enthusiast, I’ve been following this situation with the FCC closely. It seems like the current FCC chair, Brendan Carr, is really pushing an agenda that reflects what President Trump wants, and he’s now questioning whether late-night and daytime talk shows should be exempt from the ‘equal time’ rules. Basically, these rules require broadcasters to give equal opportunity to different political viewpoints. A lot of legal experts and people in the media are saying that trying to enforce these rules strictly would be a real headache and could actually limit free speech – it’s a tricky situation, and I’m worried about the potential impact on the kind of content we get to see.

On Monday night, Stephen Colbert pointed out that Donald Trump’s administration seems determined to suppress any criticism of Trump that appears on television, suggesting this is because Trump spends so much time watching TV.

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The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is questioning whether talk shows like “The View” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” should be exempt from rules requiring equal airtime for political candidates. They’re considering if these daytime and late-night programs should have to give all candidates the same opportunity to appear on their shows.

Earlier this year, Talarico appeared on ABC’s “The View” alongside his main opponent, Jasmine Crockett, who is also a Democrat. Both are competing, along with Ahmad Hassan, for one of Texas’s two Senate seats in the Democratic primary. The Federal Communications Commission is also said to be looking into Talarico’s time on the show.

The ‘equal time rule’ is seen by many as outdated. It originally aimed to ensure fairness when people only had a few TV and radio channels to choose from. With the rise of cable, podcasts, and streaming services – which aren’t regulated like traditional broadcasting – those older channels have become less important. Commissioner Carr has proposed that TV shows can still feature political candidates, but not on traditional broadcast television.

Colbert jokingly said he was following Carr’s suggestion and announced he’d actually posted his full interview with Talarico on YouTube. In that interview, Talarico criticized the Republican Party for previously campaigning against “cancel culture.”

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A little-used FCC rule could make a comeback if commission Chair Brendan Carr has his way.

Talarico warned that there’s a growing effort to dictate what people consume and express. He described this as a particularly harmful form of ‘cancel culture’ because it’s being driven by those in power. He cited examples like the backlash against ‘The View’ after his appearance, criticism of Jimmy Kimmel for a joke, and the targeting of individuals, like the listener, for truthfully reporting on a bribe offered to Donald Trump by Paramount.

Stephen Colbert’s “The Late Show” will finish its run in May, ending a long history between the show and CBS. CBS stated the decision to cancel was based on financial considerations. This also happened while CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, was working to get approval from the Trump administration to be sold to Skydance Media, a deal which was completed in August.

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2026-02-17 23:01