While Stephen Colbert has received a slew of support and goodwill from many people following the cancellation of his late-night talk show, there is one person who is gleeful about its departure next year. It should come as no surprise that President Donald Trump is beaming about the news, but he’s also using CBS’s decision to put other late-night hosts on notice that their shows could be next. Trump took to his Truth Social platform, via The Hollywood Reporter, to gloat about the cancellation of the late-night staple and then took the opportunity to take shots at Colbert’s late-night counterparts, Jimmy Kimmel and Jimmy Fallon. Trump wrote, “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert! [Fox News late night host] Greg Gutfeld is better than all of them combined, including the Moron on NBC who ruined the once great Tonight Show.” Surprised by that reaction? I think not.
CBS’s Questionable Reasons for Canceling ‘The Late Show With Stephen Colbert’

CBS

Colbert made the announcement on his show that it would be ending in May 2026, and CBS soon made the news official by explaining it was “purely a financial decision,” citing the steady decline of linear TV ratings. There is no denying that linear ratings have softened for television over the years, and it has been reported that ad revenue, which is VERY important to the networks, has declined by 50% in the last seven years for late-night TV. These are all facts that can be backed up, but it’s the current optics that make the timing of the cancellation suspect for many commentators paying close attention to the matter.

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The news comes two weeks after Paramount settled with Trump for $16 million to resolve a lawsuit regarding a 60 Minutes interview with then-presidential candidate Kamala Harris. He believed that the interview was deceptively edited to work in her favor, something that Paramount said was “meritless” when the lawsuit went public. However, they ultimately settled with our current President, and it has been seen as a move to cater to his whims and censor themselves to avoid more legal battles. Another big financial elephant in the room is a pending merger between Paramount and Skydance. It’s widely viewed that the settlement and subsequent decisions that worked in Trump’s favor may help their chances of getting the merger approved by the FCC under his administration. Commentators and social media aficionados alike see the moves made by Paramount and CBS as pandering. With Trump now putting eyeballs on Kimmel and Fallon, who have also criticized the President on several occasions, the optics appear as if Trump is trying to make their respective networks, ABC and NBC, make similar moves against their late-night hosts. For their part, George Cheeks and Amy Reisenbach, CEO of CBS Entertainment and Paramount co-CEO, issued the typical statement that is associated with news of this nature. It said all the right things and paid respect to Colbert, but there is no way to change how this all looks. No matter how professional their parting words are and how well-written their statements are, this has already seemed to rub many in the industry the wrong way, and people are definitely taking notice.
“The Late Show With Stephen Colbert will end its historic run in May 2026 at the end of the broadcast season. We consider Stephen Colbert irreplaceable and will retire The Late Show franchise at that time. We are proud that Stephen called CBS home. He and the broadcast will be remembered in the pantheon of greats that graced late night television. This is purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night. It is not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount.”
Source: The Hollywood Reporter