CBS and Paramount have canceled Stephen Colbert's show The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. CBS said the cancellation was dictated by poor economic performance and a need to cuts costs.
Available data contradicts the corporate story. CBS claimed the cancellation was purely a financial decision. But that is contradicted by the show's actual performance. According to Nielsen ratings, the show has been the number one late-night show for nine consecutive seasons, averaging 2.417 million viewers across 41 episodes in 2025. Remarkably, it was the only late-night show to gain viewers in 2025, even as competitors saw significant declines.
Also, late-night programs have historically been profitable due to their relatively low production costs and high advertising revenues. While the late-night genre has faced some challenges, Colbert's show was the market leader by a significant margin.
Here is why CBS and Paramount had to cancel Colbert. On July 14, 2025, Colbert delivered a scathing monologue criticizing Paramount Global's $16 million settlement with President Trump, calling it "a big fat bribe". Just three days later, on July 17, CBS announced the show's termination, claiming economic cost-cutting pressure. Apparently, this is the first time a major network has terminated a top-rated late-night program following public criticism of its own parent company's political accommodation. A critical factor in understanding the settlement and the Colbert cancellation is Paramount's pending $8.4 billion merger with Skydance Media. That requires approval from the MAGA Federal Communications Commission. One analysis commented: "Paramount has decided that billions outrank millions and the cost of throwing decades of journalistic integrity under the bus is worth it".
Colbert didn't stand a chance against Trump and Paramount's morally rotted greed. The show terminates after the 2025-26 broadcast season ends in May 2026.
The Colbert cancellation fits in with Trump's systematic campaign to pressure media companies into submission. Paramount's settlement with Trump represents part of a pattern where major media corporations have chosen to pay millions rather than defend their First Amendment rights in lawsuits they would have easily won.
This is more evidence of the morally rotted authoritarianism and kleptocracy that drive djt and MAGA elites to silence criticism by any means politically possible, legal or not.