CBS says its choice to finish Stephen Colbert’s late-night comedy present is monetary, not political. But even with the ample skepticism about that rationalization, there isn’t any denying the economics weren’t working in Colbert’s favor.
The community’s bombshell announcement late Thursday that the “Late Show” will finish subsequent Might takes away President Donald Trump’s most outstanding TV critic and the most well-liked leisure program in its style.
The tv trade’s declining financial well being means comparable arduous calls are already being made with personalities and programming, with others to be confronted sooner or later. For the late-night style, there are distinctive elements to think about.
As lately as 2018, broadcast networks took in an estimated $439 million in promoting income for its late-night applications, in response to the promoting agency Tips. Final yr, that quantity dwindled to $220 million.
As soon as a draw for younger males, now they’ve turned away
Late-night TV was a specific draw for younger males, thought of the hardest-to-get and most precious demographic for advertisers. More and more, these viewers are turning to streaming providers, both to observe one thing else completely or catch highlights of the late-night reveals, that are harder for the networks to monetize.
Extra broadly, the much-predicted takeover of viewers by streaming providers is coming to cross. The Nielsen firm reported that over the past two months, for the primary time ever, extra folks consumed programming on providers like YouTube and Netflix than on ABC, CBS and NBC or any cable community.
Networks and streamers spent roughly $70 billion on leisure reveals and $30 billion for sports activities rights final yr, mentioned Brian Wieser, CEO of Madison & Wall, an promoting advisor and knowledge providers agency. Stay sports activities is essentially the most reliable magnet for viewers and prices for its rights are anticipated to extend 8% a yr over the subsequent decade. With tv viewership declining normally, it is clear the place financial savings must come from.
Wieser mentioned he doesn’t know whether or not Colbert’s present is worthwhile or not for CBS and father or mother firm Paramount International, however he is aware of the path by which it’s headed. “The economics of television are weak,” he mentioned.
In a press release saying the cancellation, George Cheeks, Paramount International’s president and chief government officer, mentioned that “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.”
Cheeks’ drawback is that not everybody believes him.
Colbert is a relentless critic of Trump, and earlier this week pointedly criticized Paramount’s choice to settle Trump’s lawsuit in opposition to CBS over a “60 Minutes” interview with Kamala Harris. He referred to as Paramount’s $16 million cost to Trump a “big fat bribe,” because the firm is in search of the administration’s approval of its merger with Skydance Media.
On Friday, the Writers Guild of America referred to as for an investigation by New York’s legal professional normal into whether or not Colbert’s cancellation is itself a bribe, “sacrificing free speech to curry favor with the Trump administration as the company looks for merger approval.”
CBS’ choice made this a pivotal week for the way forward for tv and radio programming. Congress stripped federal funding for PBS and NPR, threatening the way forward for reveals on these shops.
Journey Gunderson, government director of the Nationwide Comedy Heart, referred to as the choice to finish Colbert’s present the tip of an period.
“Late-night television has historically been one of comedy’s most audience-accessible platforms — a place where commentary meets community, night after night,” Gunderson mentioned. “This is not simply the tip of a present. It is the quiet removing of one of many few remaining platforms for each day comedic commentary.
Trump celebrates Colbert’s demise
Trump, who has referred to as up to now for CBS to terminate Colbert’s contract, celebrated the present’s upcoming demise. “I absolutely love that Colbert got fired,” the president wrote on Reality Social. “His talent was even less than his ratings.”
Some specialists questioned whether or not CBS might have explored different methods to save cash on Colbert. NBC, for instance, has reduce prices by eliminating the band on Seth Meyers’ late-night present and curbing Jimmy Fallon’s “Tonight” present to 4 nights every week.
May CBS have saved more cash by slicing off the present instantly, as a substitute of letting it run till subsequent Might, which units up an ungainly “lame duck” interval? Then once more, Colbert will hold working till his contract runs out; CBS would have needed to hold paying him anyway.
CBS lately cancelled the “After Midnight” present that ran after Colbert. However the community had signaled earlier this yr that it was ready to proceed that present till host Taylor Tomlinson determined that she wished to go away, famous Invoice Carter, writer of “The Late Shift.”
“It is a very sad day for CBS that they are getting out of the late-night race,” Andy Cohen, host of Bravo’s “Watch What Happens Live,” told The Associated Press. “I mean, they are turning off the lights after the news.”
Colbert, if he wished to proceed previous subsequent Might, would probably be capable of discover a streaming service keen to pay him, Wieser mentioned. However the way forward for late-night comedy on the leisure networks is genuinely in danger. Trump, in reality, might outlast his fiercest comedian critics. Jon Stewart, as soon as a weeknight fixture, works one evening every week at “The Daily Show” for Paramount’s Comedy Central, a community that seldom produces a lot authentic programming any extra.
ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel, who was chided on social media by Trump on Friday — “I hear Jimmy Kimmel is next” — has a contract that additionally runs out subsequent yr. Kimmel, 57, brazenly questioned in a Selection interview earlier than signing his newest three-year contract extension how lengthy he wished to do it. He is hosted his present since 2003.
“I have moments where I go, I cannot do this anymore,” Kimmel informed Selection in 2022. “And I have moments where I go, what am I gonna do with my life if I’m not doing this anymore?’ It’s a very complicated thing … I’m not going to do this forever.”
Colbert, Kimmel and Stewart have been all nominated for Emmy awards this week.
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AP journalist Liam McEwan in Los Angeles contributed to this report. David Bauder writes concerning the intersection of media and leisure for the AP. Comply with him at http://x.com/dbauder and https://bsky.app/profile/dbauder.bsky.social.
