Colbert and Capitulation

Just how far is David Ellison willing to go to shift the political tone at CBS? On Thursday, we got our clearest sign yet, as the network sacrificed its biggest star as Skydance seeks Donald Trump’s approval for its Paramount merger.

In a shocking announcement, CBS revealed that “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert” will end in May 2026—not because of ratings (Colbert has led the 11:30 p.m. slot for nearly a decade), but because of “financial reasons.” The network will retire the entire “Late Show” franchise, a move that stunned the industry and infuriated fans. But the timing and the subtext suggest something more calculated.

In the network’s statement, it went out of its way to stress: “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.” Methinks thou doth protest too much.

Colbert’s cancellation notably came just days after Ellison met with Federal Communications Commission chair Brendan Carr—a meeting in which the Skydance boss conveyed his “commitment to unbiased journalism” and “embrace of diverse viewpoints” to “ensure CBS’s editorial decision making reflects the varied ideological perspectives of American viewers.”

The move also occurred after the late-night host called out Paramount’s $16 million settlement with Trump over his baseless “60 Minutes” lawsuit, declaring it to be a “big fat bribe” and shaming CBS’s parent company on its own airwaves. Behind the scenes, a “side deal” reportedly helped seal the agreement: Trump indicated that Ellison, whose Skydance Media is acquiring Paramount, promised to air up to $20 million worth of public service announcements promoting causes favored by Trump once he takes control of CBS. Meanwhile, Ellison is courting Bari Weiss for a high-level role at a post-merger CBS News, signaling an ideological shift to the right at a network that has long prided itself on journalistic independence.

Colbert, a sharp critic of Trump who has needled his MAGA mythology, has long been a target of Trump’s ire. His monologues have skewered the president, and his influence has extended far beyond the confines of late-night TV with clips from the broadcast regularly going viral. So when CBS, under the shadow of Shari Redstone’s torturous Skydance merger in the second Trump era, decided to pull the plug, the message was clear.

“I absolutely love that Colbert got fired. His talent was even less than his ratings,” Trump wrote Friday in a Truth Social post celebrating the news. He went on to take shots at other late-night hosts, adding, “I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert!” The gloating wasn’t subtle, and neither was the implication that decision was politically convenient.

While some reports said that “The Late Show” had become unprofitable in recent years, that framing obscures the bigger picture. The show remained the top-rated program in its time slot, and its cultural relevance as a broadcast program was unmatched. The decision to cancel it wasn’t made in a vacuum. CBS president George Cheeks, who also serves as co-chief executive of Paramount, made the call in the final stages of the Skydance merger, a move that could not have happened without Ellison’s quiet approval. That merger, Status is told, is expected to be completed in the coming weeks.

The optics are hard to ignore: a top-rated show, led by one of Trump’s most vocal critics, axed just weeks after Paramount settled a lawsuit with Trump and began courting conservative media figures for leadership roles in the post-merger company. 

Democratic Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who opened an investigation into Paramount’s settlement with Trump, took note. “CBS canceled Colbert’s show just THREE DAYS after Colbert called out CBS parent company Paramount for its $16M settlement with Trump – a deal that looks like bribery,” she wrote on X. “America deserves to know if his show was canceled for political reasons.”

The Writers Guild of America also weighed in, calling the cancelation a possible “bribe” and urging the New York Attorney General to investigate. “Given Paramount’s recent capitulation to President Trump in the CBS News lawsuit, the Writers Guild of America has significant concerns that The Late Show’s cancelation is a bribe, sacrificing free speech to curry favor with the Trump Administration as the company looks for merger approval,” it said in a statement.

Other late night hosts and stars also reacted with disgust. ABC’s Kimmel, never one to mince words, responded with a blunt “Fuck you CBS” on his Instagram story. And NBC’s Jimmy Fallon also expressed surprise: “I’m just as shocked as everyone. Stephen is one of the sharpest, funniest hosts to ever do it. I really thought I’d ride this out with him for years to come.”

And Colbert may not be the only one on the chopping block. As Status previously reported, Jon Stewart’s future at Paramount-owned Comedy Central is also uncertain. Stewart, who returned to “The Daily Show” last year on a part-time basis, addressed the situation on his podcast this week: “Unfortunately, we haven’t heard anything from them. They haven’t called me and said like, ‘Don’t get too comfortable in that office, Stewart!’” He added, “But let me tell you something: I’ve been kicked out of shittier establishments than that. We’ll land on our feet.”

The cancellation of “The Late Show” marks more than just the shuttering of a comedy program; it's the end of an era for the Tiffany Network. Once a symbol of journalistic excellence and cultural leadership, CBS now appears determined to dismantle its own legacy in pursuit of short-term political favor and corporate consolidation. As the network trades its identity for expediency, the message is clear: no institution, no matter how storied, is safe from the forces reshaping American media.