On Friday morning, President Trump expressed his enthusiasm over CBS cancelling “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.”
He shared his sentiments via a post, stating, “I love Colbert being fired. His talent was even less than he appreciated.”
Trump didn’t stop there; he also critiqued ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel and NBC’s Jimmy Fallon, calling Kimmel “even less talented than Colbert.” He even praised Greg Gutfeld, asserting he was superior to them, including the “idiot” Fallon who, according to Trump, had diminished the show’s previous greatness.
This company decision arrived shortly after CBS’s parent company, Paramount Global, had negotiations about a $16 million lawsuit involving Trump, raising some eyebrows.
Colbert has been hosting “Late Show” since 2015, taking over from David Letterman. During the second quarter of this year, his show averaged almost 2.5 million viewers, hitting the top tier for late-night talk shows. Interestingly, Gutfeld’s show, airing an hour earlier, isn’t a direct competitor to Colbert’s time slot.
Historically, Trump had maintained a cordial dynamic with Gutfeld.
CBS explained that the choice to cancel Colbert’s show was purely financial. “It has never been related to the performance of the show or any other issues with Paramount,” they stated, elaborating that their respect for Colbert and his team made this decision particularly challenging.
Colbert cracked a joke about Paramount Global’s dealings with Trump during his latest monologue, which involved a payment dispute related to a “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris during the last presidential election. He pointed out the network’s need for FCC approval for a merger with Skydance.
Senators Elizabeth Warren and Adam Schiff, both guests on Colbert’s show, demanded transparency regarding the cancellation. Warren noted, “America deserves to know if his show was cancelled for political reasons.” Schiff echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the public’s right to be informed.
Colbert, discussing the cancellation on Thursday’s show, acknowledged he had learned about the decision the day before. He remarked, “It’s not just the end of our show, but the end of ‘Late Show’ on CBS. I’m not being replaced; all of this is gone.”
Colbert had often featured guests who opposed Trump, including Warren and Schiff, who may be among the reasons for the show’s tension with conservative audiences.
The lingering questions about the merger and the settlement with Trump have raised speculations about Colbert’s future. After Trump suggested Colbert should be fired last year, these questions have only intensified.
Updated at 9:55am
