Colbert’s Late Show Controversy Involves Rep. Crockett

Rep. Jasmine Crockett, a Democrat from Texas, stated on Friday that she has yet to receive an invitation to join Stephen Colbert on his “Late Show.” This comes shortly after Colbert claimed that CBS, his network, had silenced his interview with James Talarico, a political rival in the Senate, due to pressure from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).

Earlier this week, Colbert mentioned that CBS halted Talarico’s segment, citing FCC guidelines that demand “equal time” for competing candidates. In light of this, Colbert expressed his frustration towards both the FCC and CBS. Despite the cancellation, Talarico’s interview was uploaded online and has garnered over 8 million views on YouTube, which significantly boosted his campaign fundraising by over $2.5 million.

Crockett shared on MS NOW’s “Morning Joe” that she was not invited to appear either before or after Colbert’s discussion with Talarico.

Crockett pointed out that while she had previously appeared on Colbert’s show twice, there has been no invite since Talarico declared his candidacy. She mentioned receiving a call from CBS’s parent company following the incident.

“I was told CBS didn’t inform Colbert about the inability to air Talarico’s segment; instead, they indicated that airing it would necessitate giving equal time to me,” Crockett explained. However, she added that she couldn’t confirm the accuracy of that statement.

She’s insisted that she was never approached regarding participating in discussions related to the Senate race. CBS later issued a statement refuting claims of censorship, stating that the decision to share Talarico’s interview on YouTube was intended to sidestep equal time mandates.

During a broadcast on Monday, Colbert asserted he had faced censorship, revealing that a network lawyer had explicitly informed him he could not have Talarico on the show. Meanwhile, the media scrutiny spurred by the situation has been instrumental in promoting Talarico’s campaign. Colbert even made a spectacle of crumpling up a CBS denial and tossing it in a dog waste bag during a later segment.

FCC Chairman Brendan Kerr dismissed the entire controversy as a “hoax,” implying that Talarico might have leveraged the situation for fundraising and publicity, and observed that the media played right into it.

No immediate comment came from Colbert’s show spokesperson regarding the unfolding events.