Latest news with #canceled
Fox News
11 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Ex-late-night host admits Colbert's show is getting canceled because it's 'hemorrhaging' viewers, money
Canceled late-night host Samantha Bee admitted Tuesday that Stephen Colbert's late-night show "hemorrhaging" money and viewers is the main reason it's getting canceled. Bee, whose TBS late-night program, "Full Frontal with Samantha Bee," was canceled in 2022, reacted to CBS announcing the end of "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" on the "Breaking Bread with Tom Papa" podcast. "You know, these legacy shows, like they are hemorrhaging money with no real end to that in sight," she told the host, comedian Tom Papa. CBS announced earlier this month that it would cancel "The Late Show" next May at the end of its broadcast season, clarifying that the cancellation was "purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night." A report from Puck News journalist Matt Belloni revealed that Colbert's show lost "more than $40 million a year." Many prominent liberals and Democratic figures have speculated the network had cut the show for political reasons, a notion both Papa and Bee said could be the case, but they also admitted that the show was a financial drain that no one was watching. Papa said, "I mean the show loses $40 million a year." "Yep," Bee replied. "So that's a reality," the host said. Bee agreed: "That's a reality." "The parent company is trying to curry favor with the president. So that's a reality," he added. Bee replied, "Yeah, I think both things are true. I think both things are just true and real. Like it definitely was hemorrhaging money." Papa agreed and Bee continued, saying that "legacy shows" like Colbert's and other late-night hosts' are floundering financially. She then went on to note that people are not watching these shows like they used to. "People are just not tuning in remotely, comparatively to how they used to. Well, people are literally on their phones all the time for one thing, so they don't necessarily need a recap of the day's events. They're very well-versed in what has happened," Bee added. Referencing the popular Netflix thriller "Squid Games," Bee quipped that people would "really rather watch like people just absolutely murder each other in a South Korean game show – just like watching people fall off cliffs to relax at night before nodding off." Elsewhere, Bee mentioned how President Donald Trump having to sign off on a merger between CBS's parent company, Paramount, and Skydance, probably exerted some pressure on the network to do something about Colbert, whose show is very anti-Trump. "It is also true that when the president of the United States has to give his sign-off on a corporate merger, the thing you can't do is make jokes about him. He's a thin-skinned idiot. And we know, he's like a pernicious cancer." For that reason as well, she told Papa it was a "no-brainer" that the network decided to let Colbert's show go.
Yahoo
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
People Are Pointing Out This 1 Huge Reason It's So Hypocritical Of Megyn Kelly To Call Stephen Colbert A "Failure"
Radio host and podcaster Megyn Kelly tried to take a victory lap after the announcement last week that Stephen Colbert's Late Show would be canceled by CBS after 10 years on the air and despite it being the highest-rated show in its time slot. But given her own history, it didn't go well. Related: Kelly said on her show Friday that Colbert took The Late Show ― which was started by David Letterman ― and 'completely drove it into the ground.' 'He desperately wanted to be Keith Olbermann,' she said. 'And guess what? Keith Olbermann is a failure, and now so are you, Stephen Colbert.' Kelly was a longtime host at Fox News, where she drew the ire of then-candidate Donald Trump during a Republican debate in 2015. 'You could see there was blood coming out of her eyes,' Trump infamously complained at the time. 'Blood was coming out of her — wherever.' She later left Fox and signed a three-year $69 million deal with NBC, which included a Sunday night news magazine show and a third hour of the Today show called Megyn Kelly Today. Related: But she struggled in the ratings, and was taken off the air after she defended the use of blackface as part of Halloween costumes. She apologized, but the show was canceled days later after a little more than a year on the air. NBC reportedly paid out her full contract. After she left, the third hour of the Today show jumped in the ratings by 18%, NBC News reported at the time. Related: The feed on X (formerly Twitter) for Kelly's show posted her comments about Colbert ― and Kelly's critics fired back with some reminders of her own past: Hmm. Let me get this right. @StephenAtHome @colbertlateshow had a successful 10-year run on CBS. @megynkelly failed MASSIVELY on NBC. In fact, she will go down as one of the biggest failures in media history. Didn't last 2 years, and they had to pay her $60M-plus. Be quiet, Megyn — rolandsmartin (@rolandsmartin) July 20, 2025 @rolandsmartin/X / Via You might want to lighten up on the 'cautionary tale of failure' and do some self reflection before calling anyone else out. — Dawn Young-McDaniel❌👑 (@justdawn_) July 20, 2025 @justdawn_/x / Via It is one of the most amazing acts of memory-holing in media history that Kelly pretends that she didn't sell out to NBC after Trump's first election (using her feud with him & saying she was apolitical), & then after she was fired there slowly became a leading MAGA influencer.😂 — John Ziegler (@Zigmanfreud) July 21, 2025 @Zigmanfreud/X / Via What happened when you went to NBC? — Mark Banker (@themarkbanker) July 20, 2025 @themarkbanker/X / Via Alright, Megyn, let me lay it on the line for ya. You call Stephen Colbert .@StephenAtHome being a failure? Here's the score: Colbert's been the undisputed heavyweight champ of late-night TV for years. He's been number one in total viewers and the key 18-49 demographic for… — Human☮🇺🇸🇺🇦🇺🇸🌊 (@4HumanUnity) July 20, 2025 @4HumanUnity/X / Via Related: If being fired/cancelled was the barometer for failure, someone should get Meg a mirror. — Mike Therien (@miketherien) July 20, 2025 @miketherien/X / Via Megyn, who had to crawl back into Trump's good graces after he insulted and humiliated her, calling someone else a failure? — Rich (@RealRichWilkins) July 21, 2025 @RealRichWilkins/X / Via Megyn who? LOL The lack of self-awareness among this crowd is really something else. Colbert still has a hit show. As for Megyn… ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ — John Aravosis 🇺🇸🇬🇷🏳️🌈 (@aravosis) July 21, 2025 @aravosis/X / Via Like if Kid Rock said Springsteen's a failure. — Chuck Throckmorton (@ChuckThrock) July 20, 2025 @ChuckThrock/X / Via Speaking of failures, what happened to Megyn at NBC? — Mallory (@mallsta) July 20, 2025 @mallsta/X / Via This article originally appeared on HuffPost. Also in In the News: Also in In the News: Also in In the News:
Fox News
21-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Keith Olbermann pours cold water on claims Colbert was fired for political reasons
Ex-MSNBC host Keith Olbermann has weighed in on whether Stephen Colbert was canceled by CBS for political reasons, throwing cold water on the theory he was axed for his criticism of Trump. "Sorry. That's not what happened here. If it had, they wouldn't be keeping him on until next MAY," Olbermann said in a post on X. CBS announced they'd canceled "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" Thursday, stating that the over 30-year-long franchise would come to an end in May 2026 with no subsequent host taking over following Colbert's departure. The show was previously hosted by David Letterman from 1992-2015. Olbermann authored the post in response to an X user who posted that Colbert's firing was a sign that the United States had descended into fascism. "We are officially at the 'pulling comedians off the air who criticize our dear leader' phase of fascism," the user posted over a picture of the late night host. Following the network's announcement of Colbert's ouster, numerous left-wing politicians and journalists spoke out, alleging that the talk show host was fired for political reasons, speculating that axing Colbert – a fierce critic of President Trump – was an attempt to placate White House officials amid a pending merger between CBS' parent company Paramount and Skydance. "CBS's billionaire owners pay Trump $16 million to settle a bogus lawsuit while trying to sell the network to Skydance. Stephen Colbert, an extraordinary talent and the most popular late night host, slams the deal. Days later, he's fired. Do I think this is a coincidence? NO," Vermont Independent Sen. Bernie Sanders posted on X. "If Paramount and CBS ended the Late Show for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better," Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., wrote on X. CBS settled with President Trump after he sued the network alleging election interference over a "60 Minutes" interview with his 2024 opponent former Vice President Kamala Harris which he alleged was deceptively edited. A clip from the interview, in which Harris was asked about the war in Gaza, was released on "Face the Nation" prior to the "60 Minutes" broadcast and featured the former VP delivering an answer that was widely derided as "word salad." When the interview was finally broadcast, a different, more concise response was swapped in its place. CBS, however, claimed that "The Late Show's" cancellation was due to financial reasons, saying the show lost some $40 million a year. Colbert is No. 1 in the late night timeslot among network talk show hosts (though he regularly comes behind Fox's Gutfeld), averaging around 2.4 million viewers per episode. Overall viewership for late night talk shows has steadily declined in recent years, leading to a decrease in total ad revenues. Colbert was tapped to host the "Late Show" following Letterman's retirement after he hosted the widely acclaimed "Colbert Report" on Comedy Central. Upon taking the reins of the franchise, Colbert eschewed the well-known formula of hosting a show that appeals to the broadest swath of Americans, opting instead for a highly partisan, Trump-critical program. Fox News Digital has reached out to CBS for comment. When former President Joe Biden won the 2020 election, Colbert popped champagne on air and danced, proclaiming his joy in the election result. "Ladies and gentlemen, Joe Biden did it! He's our next president! I'm so happy!" he proclaimed, adding that he cried tears of joy upon learning Trump would no longer be president.
Fox News
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Trump celebrates Colbert getting booted by CBS in gleeful Truth Social post
Count one prominent person among those happy that Stephen Colbert's late-night show was canceled. "I absolutely love that Colbert got fired," President Donald Trump posted Friday on Truth Social. "His talent was even less than his ratings. I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next. Has even less talent than Colbert! Greg Gutfeld is better than all of them combined, including the Moron on NBC who ruined the once great Tonight Show," Trump went on. Colbert, one of Trump's fiercest critics, took over the CBS show from David Letterman in 2015, and became a major platform for Democratic politicians. Last month, Colbert welcomed New York City mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani before the socialist hopeful clinched the Democratic nomination. On Thursday, the same day he announced his cancellation effective next May, his first guest was Sen. Adam Schiff, D-Calif. CBS said in a statement that the long-running late-night show will end in May 2026, but it was "purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night," adding, "It is not related in any way to the show's performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount." There had been speculation about the future of the Paramount-owned late-night programs, which also includes "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central, as its planned corporate merger with Skydance Media is expected to take place later this year. Colbert was outspoken against the settlement, calling it a "big fat bribe" to the Trump administration. He joked about being pressured by studio heads earlier this week. "Some of the TV typers out there are blogging that once Skydance gets CBS, the new owners' desire to please Trump will 'put pressure on late-night host and frequent Trump critic Stephen Colbert,'" Colbert joked. "OK, but how are they going to put pressure on Stephen Colbert… if they can't find him?" Meanwhile, Fox News Channel's "Gutfeld!" has surged to become late-night's highest-rated program. In the second quarter of 2025, the show, hosted by Fox star Greg Gutfeld, notched 3 million viewers and 365,000 in the 25-54 age demographic at the 10 p.m. ET hour. In addition to routing cable news competition, "Gutfeld!" outpaced all broadcast and late-night television, including "The Late Show" and other such established programs as Comedy Central's "The Daily Show," ABC's "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" and NBC's "The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon" and "Late Night with Seth Meyers."
Yahoo
11-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Slovakia festival hosting Kanye West cancelled after 'Heil Hitler' furore
The Slovakia festival due to welcome Kanye West next week has called off the event following the uproar over the US rapper's May release of a song glorifying Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. Before the July 20 gig was cancelled, Bratislava's Rubicon hip hop festival was set to be West's only confirmed live performance in Europe this year. Though he has won 24 Grammy Awards over the course of his career, the erratic rapper has become notorious in recent years for his increasingly antisemitic and hate-filled rants. West, who has legally changed his name to the shorthand "Ye", released the song "Heil Hitler" on May 8, the 80th anniversary of the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II. In the wake of the announcement of West's appearance at Rubicon, thousands of people signed a petition against the gig. The rapper -- a vocal supporter of US President Donald Trump -- is "repeatedly and openly adhering to symbols and ideology connected with the darkest period of modern global history", two groups behind the petition said. In a statement on Instagram late on Wednesday, the festival's organisers said the decision to cancel the event was "due to media pressure and the withdrawal of several artists and partners". "This was not an easy decision," the organisers said, without drawing a direct line between the rapper's planned appearance and the cancellations. Contacted on Thursday by AFP, the Rubicon festival did not offer further explanations. Styling itself as the central European country's premier hip hop hang-out, the Rubicon festival was set to run from July 18 to 20. US rappers Offset and Sheck Wes were set to share top billing with West. Australia cancelled West's visa on July 2 over "Heil Hitler", in which West raps about his custody battle with ex-wife Kim Kardashian before the song ends with an extract of a speech by the Nazi dictator. West's wife, Bianca Censori, is Australian. pv-bg/sbk/djt
