Jon Stewart delivered a scathing on-air rebuke of CBS and its dad or mum firm, Paramount World, on Monday’s episode of “The Daily Show,” blasting the community’s resolution to cancel “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” and accusing executives of capitulating to political strain from President Trump.
Stewart, whose reveals airs on the Comedy Central cable channel that can also be owned by Paramount World, cited the $8 billion merger between Paramount and Skydance Media as one of many elements that led to the choice to axe the present, which had been hemorrhaging tens of hundreds of thousands of {dollars} yearly.
Stewart, joined by NBC “Tonight Show” host Jimmy Fallon, “Late Night with Seth Meyers” host Seth Meyers, “Daily Show” alum and HBO star John Oliver, and former “Saturday Night Live” star Adam Sandler made a cameo on the Ed Sullivan Theater the place Colbert’s present is filmed and provided their help for the star.
Stewart stated that the merger, which is awaiting federal approval, wouldn’t have been potential with out CBS packages like “The Late Show” because it made the Tiffany Community precious as a property.
“Shows that say something, shows that take a stand, shows that are unafraid — this is not a ‘We speak truth to power.’ We don’t,” stated Stewart, who final week addressed hypothesis that Colbert could be canceled.
“We speak opinions to television cameras. But we try. We f–king try, every night.”
“And if you believe, as corporations or as networks, you can make yourself so innocuous that you can serve a gruel so flavorless that you will never again be on the boy king’s radar — a.) why will anyone watch you? And you are f–king wrong,” he added.
His profanity-laden monologue culminated in a efficiency with a church choir chanting, “sack the f–k up” or “go f–k yourself.”
As a result of Comedy Central airs on cable, the section was uncensored and never topic to community profanity rules. Paramount and Comedy Central didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark.
The Publish has additionally sought remark from Skydance and CBS.
Later that evening, Colbert additionally responded throughout his personal present, echoing Stewart’s anger and directing his personal “go f–k yourself” at Trump, who had celebrated this system’s cancellation.
Colbert mocked the community’s settlement with the president as a “big fat bribe” and warned, “They left me alive. And now for the next 10 months, the gloves are off.”
The backlash comes simply days after CBS confirmed it will finish “The Late Show,” which Colbert has helmed since 2015. The community characterised the transfer as “purely a financial decision” unrelated to “performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount.”
Regardless of CBS’s claims, the cancellation ignited hypothesis that the present — recognized for its frequent critiques of Trump — was a casualty of Paramount’s efforts to clean regulatory approval for its merger with Skydance.
The merger, which might create the brand new Paramount Skydance Company, remains to be awaiting clearance from the Federal Communications Fee (FCC).
That course of has taken on political overtones, significantly after Skydance CEO David Ellison met with FCC Chairman Brendan Carr final week and pledged to replicate “diverse viewpoints” that seize “the varied ideological perspectives of American viewers.”
Colbert’s late-night profession traces again to “The Daily Show,” the place he joined Stewart in 1997. The 2 have maintained a detailed relationship since.
In 2005, Colbert launched “The Colbert Report,” which aired after “The Daily Show” and catapulted him into late-night stardom.
On Monday’s “Daily Show,” Stewart praised Colbert’s daring resolution to tackle the CBS gig, calling it a leap right into a world of “intense scrutiny and a vastly larger audience.”
“Watching Stephen exceed all expectations in the role and become the No. 1 late-night show on network television has been an undeniable great pleasure for me — as a viewer and as his friend,” Stewart stated.
He additionally acknowledged the monetary headwinds dealing with late-night TV.
“We’re all basically operating a Blockbuster kiosk inside of a Tower Records,” Stewart stated. However he added that industries shouldn’t merely fold when codecs change.
“When CDs stopped selling, they didn’t just go, ‘Oh, well, music, it’s been a good run,’” he quipped.
Stewart famous that he had not heard from Paramount about the way forward for his personal present amid the pending merger however closed with a defiant message: “This is not the moment to give in. I’m not giving in. I’m not going anywhere — I think.”
Ellison is the son of Oracle co-founder and Trump ally Larry Ellison. Although the youthful Ellison donated to Joe Biden’s marketing campaign in early 2024, Trump has since expressed help for the merger and the mixed firm’s in depth property, together with CBS, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central, BET, MTV and blockbuster franchises like “Sonic the Hedgehog” and “Smurfs.”
The late-night section adopted Paramount’s latest $16 million settlement with Trump over a lawsuit alleging CBS’s “60 Minutes” manipulated a 2024 interview with then-Vice President Kamala Harris to favor Democrats.
Trump had initially demanded as a lot as $20 billion in damages. The president additionally claimed that the settlement could possibly be as excessive as $35 million, although Paramount has denied this.
Though most authorized consultants dismissed the case as missing advantage, Paramount finally agreed to settle — protecting Trump’s authorized charges and earmarking the remaining funds for his future presidential library.
The settlement didn’t embrace any admission of wrongdoing or an apology, nor have been any funds paid straight or not directly to Trump or his co-plaintiff, Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson.
As a part of the deal, CBS additionally dedicated to releasing full written transcripts of future “60 Minutes” interviews with presidential candidates, barring authorized or nationwide safety redactions.
The settlement discussions and subsequent settlement precipitated turmoil inside CBS Information. In April, longtime “60 Minutes” editor Invoice Owens resigned, citing a lack of editorial independence.
Wendy McMahon, president and CEO of CBS Information & Stations, adopted swimsuit in Might. In June, “60 Minutes” correspondent Scott Pelley warned that the settlement could be “very damaging” to the community’s credibility.
Throughout Monday’s present, Colbert introduced on Lin-Manuel Miranda and “Weird Al” Yankovic to lighten the temper with a Coldplay cowl.
The present’s kiss cam featured Anderson Cooper, Andy Cohen, Fallon, Meyers and a cartoon Trump dancing with the Paramount emblem — an obvious nod to a latest viral incident at a Coldplay live performance that resulted in a tech CEO’s resignation.
