CBS has canceled “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” due to the network’s inability to make the show profitable in an entertainment world increasingly dominated by streaming. The show, which had been a fixture on the network for over three decades, was losing tens of millions of dollars a year.
In recent weeks, CBS executives decided that they could no longer afford to lose money on the show, with losses estimated at $50 million in ad revenue over the past seven years. The cancellation is part of a broader trend in the late-night genre, which has seen many shows fall victim to the shift towards streaming.
The decision was reportedly made by CBS president George Cheeks, who weighed the costs against potential alternatives but concluded that there was no viable path to profitability. Colbert, a longtime critic of President Trump, had previously called a $16 million settlement with the Trump administration “a big fat bribe.”
The cancellation has sparked a heated debate about politics and free speech, with some accusing CBS of sacrificing the show’s values in order to curry favor with the Trump administration. Senator Bernie Sanders called the cancellation a coincidence, while the Writers Guild of America expressed concerns that the move was motivated by a desire to appease the administration.
In recent years, late-night shows have seen declining advertising revenue and an increase in online consumption. Many hosts have cut back on production costs, reducing the number of episodes produced per week. Despite this, the show’s budget remains high, with estimates suggesting it cost over $100 million a year to produce.
The cancellation marks a significant shift in the late-night landscape, which is becoming increasingly dominated by streaming services like Paramount+, Peacock, and Hulu. While some genres have successfully made the leap to streaming, topical talk shows remain relatively unchanged, with audiences preferring bite-sized clips on social media platforms rather than full episodes.
Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2025/07/18/business/media/stephen-colbert-late-show-cbs.html