CBS Cancels Stephen Colbert's Show 3 Days After He Criticized CBS Parent Company's $16M Settlement Deal with Trump
CBS claims the cancellation of their top-rated late-night show was "purely financial." But just three days after Colbert called Paramount's Trump settlement a "bribe," he was fired.
CBS shocked the entertainment world on Thursday by canceling "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert", their Emmy-nominated, ratings-leading late-night program. The network insists it's about money, not politics, and that it's coincidence this happened 72 hours after Colbert blasted his own employer for paying Trump $16 million to make a lawsuit disappear.
Trump had sued CBS over their "60 Minutes" interview with Kamala Harris during the 2024 campaign, claiming the network deceptively edited Harris's responses to make her look better. Legal experts considered the case meritless as editing interviews for time is standard television practice, and CBS was widely expected to win if the case went to trial. But earlier this month, CBS's parent company Paramount Global agreed to pay Trump $16 million for his future presidential library and release future interview transcripts rather than fight it in court.
CBS claims late-night TV is struggling financially, which is technically true. But Colbert's show consistently leads ratings in its time slot and just got nominated for an Emmy this week. If money was really the issue, the network could have tried cost-cutting measures like they did with other shows, or given him a chance to renegotiate.
Instead, they made an example out of Colbert for criticizing Trump.
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Paramount's $16 Million "Bribe"
Conveniently, Paramount currently needs Trump's Federal Communications Commission to approve their $8 billion merger with Skydance Media. Before the settlement, CBS News CEO Wendy McMahon and "60 Minutes" executive producer Bill Owens had both resigned, citing threats to editorial independence.
Colbert said this week, "As someone who has always been a proud employee of this network, I am offended." He connected the settlement directly to the pending merger, calling it "a big fat bribe."
Corporate Media's History of Folding Under Pressure
In 2003, MSNBC canceled Phil Donahue's top-rated show weeks before the Iraq War. An internal memo later revealed that it was because executives feared he'd provide "a home for the liberal antiwar agenda." That same year, Clear Channel banned the Dixie Chicks from over 1,200 radio stations after Natalie Maines criticized President Bush, organizing rallies where fans destroyed their CDs with bulldozers.
In 2004, CBS forced out Dan Rather after he reported on Bush's questionable National Guard service. While Rather's sourcing proved flawed, the corporate response sent a clear message to journalists considering investigations into powerful figures.
Each time, corporations choose political relationships over editorial independence. The Colbert firing is just the latest, but notably the most brazen, in this lineage.
Late-Night Comedy’s Evolution and Limits
Traditional late-night television stayed safely above the political fray. Johnny Carson cracked safe jokes about politicians from both parties, while "Saturday Night Live" focused more on silly impressions than serious political commentary.
Jon Stewart's "The Daily Show" changed everything in the 2000s. Stewart and Stephen Colbert transformed late-night into genuine political journalism. A 2007 Pew Research poll found Stewart tied for fourth place among America's most trusted journalists, alongside Brian Williams and Dan Rather.
Colbert's "Colbert Report" took this further. Playing a bombastic right-wing pundit, he exposed conservative hypocrisy with surgical precision. His 2006 White House Correspondents' Dinner roast of President Bush turned him into a folk hero for Americans hungry for someone willing to speak truth to power.
When Colbert moved to CBS in 2015, he dropped the character but kept the political edge. He became the most popular late-night host in part by consistently calling out Trump's lies. Crucially, though, Colbert's move to mainstream network television meant he could no longer critique the very media institutions he now represented.
On "The Colbert Report," he could expose the hypocrisy of cable news and corporate media as an outsider looking in. At CBS, he had to work within the constraints of being part of that establishment. His Trump criticism remained sharp and effective, but it operated within the boundaries of mainstream network television. He couldn't take aim at his own industry's failures the way he once did.
CBS being willing to sacrifice their most popular host for criticism well within traditional bounds shows just how completely corporate media has capitulated to Trump. They fired someone who had already adapted to work within the system, proving that even the most restrained criticism is now considered dangerous.
The New Era of Corporate Cowardice
The Trump administration doesn't even need to make direct threats anymore. Companies have watched Trump file lawsuits against CBS and ABC, threaten broadcast licenses, and promise to defund PBS and NPR. The message is clear enough that corporations preemptively cave rather than risk becoming targets.
Paramount's situation is especially precarious, as their Skydance merger needs Trump administration approval. David Ellison, who leads Skydance, has been spotted at UFC matches with Trump. His father, Oracle billionaire Larry Ellison, describes himself as a Trump supporter.
However, The Writers Guild isn't buying the "purely financial" explanation. They've asked New York's attorney general to investigate whether the show was canceled "to curry favor with the Trump administration." Democratic senators Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders have raised similar concerns.
Trump celebrated the cancellation gleefully. "I absolutely love that Colbert got fired," he posted on Truth Social. "I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next."
Press freedom is dying in America by a thousand cuts: through quiet corporate decisions in boardrooms that choose profits and political relationships over holding power accountable.
Again, Colbert's show wasn't particularly radical. His Trump criticism was relatively mainstream liberal commentary, nowhere near as biting as his "Colbert Report" character. Yet even this mild dissent proved too much for a company seeking Trump's favor.
But here's the chilling reality: if corporate media can sacrifice their most popular host, what journalist is safe?
Corporate media is sending a message that any criticism of Trump, no matter how factual or measured, can cost you your career.
And it's about to get much worse. Trump has already threatened that "Jimmy Kimmel is next." Every media company is now calculating whether their hosts, reporters, and investigative teams are worth the risk of becoming Trump's next target.
The reality is stark: we need independent journalists who can't be fired for telling the truth.
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References
Stelter, Brian. "Inside CBS' 'agonizing decision' to cancel Colbert's top-rated late-night show." CNN Business, July 18, 2025.
Grady, Constance. "There's a bigger story behind Colbert's cancellation." Vox, July 18, 2025.
Yang, Maya. "Writers' union urges investigation into Paramount move to cancel Colbert show." The Guardian, July 18, 2025.
Ahn, Ashley. "Lawmakers Question Whether CBS Canceled Colbert's Show for Political Reasons." The New York Times, July 18, 2025.
Loofbourow, Lili. "The end of Colbert's 'Late Show' has implications beyond late-night TV." The Washington Post, July 18, 2025.
Harvey, Lauren. "'Jimmy Kimmel is next': Trump gloats after cancellation of Colbert's 'Late Show'." Los Angeles Times, July 18, 2025.
I’m done with CBS and anything associated with them. I stopped watching them months ago and paramount is a piece of garbage. Like trump and his regime they are all traitors not to mention they canceled my show the equalizer last year. They probably will be letting that new black soap opera go soon I know the bigots in the White House hates that.
Dictators do that. People wake up and plan a defense.