(What is up with these old, washed-up lefties? Do they think because
they're old now that anyone cares what they spew [case in point: James Carville]. Letterman's show was crap from the beginning. However,
Letterman was smart enough to keep his outlandish and pedantic views out
of his show most of the time. Neither of these men can hold a candle to
Johnny Carson who was a leftist also but knew as a comedian, no one paid
him for his political views.)

From: https://shorturl.at/TZ02r (nypost.com)

===
David Letterman hurls fiery rant at `gutless' CBS over Stephen Colbert's `Late
Show' cancellation

By Nicholas McEntyre
Published July 26, 2025, 5:23 a.m. ET

David Letterman delivered a fiery rant against CBS and parent company
Paramount for cancelling Stephen Colbert's "Late Show," calling the
decision "gutless" and "pure cowardice" as he labeled his successor a
martyr of the network.

Letterman, who hosted CBS's late-night talk show for 22 years,
passionately defended Colbert during his conversation with former "Late
Show" producers Barbara Gaines and Mary Barclay on Friday - just over a
week since the show was axed.

"The fact that they killed the franchise and told Stephen to go,"
Letterman said in a video posted to his YouTube channel. "Now, for
Stephen, I love this. He is a martyr. Good for him."

The 78-year-old comedian says Colbert had immortalized himself as the face
of the network since he took over the iconic talk show in September 2015.

"10 years ago, I quit and left," Letterman said. "Then Stephen
Colbert comes along, and pretty quickly established himself as a precise,
crisp, witty political satirist, and often his target has been the current
administration.

"Based on that and just the overall entertainment quota of the show, drew
a great audience and people became not addicted to but always looking
forward to political satire from Stephen Colbert, he was very good at it.
For 10 years, I think became the face of the network."

On July 17, CBS announced that it would cancel Colbert's show in 2026 due
to financial reasons.

The show was losing between $40 million and $50 million a year, The Post
learned.

Letterman didn't believe the financial hardship claims were the reason for
the cancellation, instead blaming the company executives who feared
Paramount's sale to Skydance wouldn't go through.

"If they were losing this kind of money, you're telling me losing this
kind of money happened yesterday. Yeah right," he said. "I bet they were
losing this kind of money six weeks ago, or they have never been losing
money."

The comedian called out the network's news branch, saying CBS News doesn't
make money for the company and is still around.

"Take a look at CBS News, it's still in business and I'm not certain that
that's a profit center," he said.

"I think the idea that they're hiding behind money and they're giving him
another 10 months. That's a huge chunk of money they're gonna lose,"
Letterman said.

Colbert's cancellation came as CBS-Paramount Holdings finalized the sale
of the network to Skydance Media for $8.4 billion on July 24.

"The f-k is Skydance? Honest to Christ. Is it a discount airline?"
Letterman joked.

"I think one day, if not today, the people at CBS who have manipulated and
handled this are going to be embarrassed because this is gutless," he
added.

The purported $8.4 billion sale comes in light of CBS settling a lawsuit
with President Donald Trump after the commander in chief accused CBS News'
"60 Minutes" of deceptively editing an interview with then-Vice President
Kamala Harris in the weeks leading up to the 2024 general election.

Letterman called the settlement "pure cowardice" as the lawsuit targeted
the network's "pinnacle of journalistic integrity."

Colbert, 61, has also called himself a "martyr" as he blamed his show's
demise on Trump, telling the commander in chief to "go f-k yourself" in
his opening monologue on July 21.

Letterman wished the cancellation had happened on his watch as he now has
to kiss "Colbert's ring."

The comedian had already commented on the shock ending to the long-time
show.

"You can't spell CBS without BS," Letterman captioned a YouTube video of
his old jokes against the Turner network.
===

-- Sean

... Common sense is not so common. - Voltaire
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David Letterman delivered a fiery rant against CBS and parent company
Paramount for cancelling Stephen Colbert's "Late Show," calling the
decision "gutless" and "pure cowardice" as he labeled his successor a
martyr of the network.

I don't find Colbert funny and have never been motivated to watch the show since he took over. When Letterman was on, it was often funny and I would sometimes watch. Colbert not being on TV is fine with me.

That said, if CBS cancelled the show just so parent Paramount could get a
green light on a merger, that is questionable behavior and sets a precident that could affect anyone, regardless of their political stance.

OTOH, if CBS cancelled the show because it was no longer financially
feasible, then so be it and good ridance. Considering that CBS could have
just fired Colbert, kept the show, and replaced him with someone else, I am inclined to believe that the political/merger issue may have been a happy coincidence for them.

It wasn't that long ago that another Colbert backed talk show, starring Charlamagne the Great, was quickly "disappeared" by Comedy Central (another Paramount holding) after he interviewed Kamala Harris and didn't softball his questions... something that I suspect pissed off Colbert and the folks at Comedy Central.


* SLMR 2.1a * ???
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Mike Powell wrote to DIGIMAUS <=-

I don't find Colbert funny and have never been motivated to watch the
show since he took over. When Letterman was on, it was often funny and
I would sometimes watch. Colbert not being on TV is fine with me.

I never found him funny at all. I mean, the guy can't pronounce his own
last name correctly.

That said, if CBS cancelled the show just so parent Paramount could get
a green light on a merger, that is questionable behavior and sets a precident that could affect anyone, regardless of their political
stance.

That is the Left's favorite consipracy theory right now.

OTOH, if CBS cancelled the show because it was no longer financially feasible, then so be it and good ridance. Considering that CBS could
have just fired Colbert, kept the show, and replaced him with someone else, I am inclined to believe that the political/merger issue may have been a happy coincidence for them.

I bet they're letting him stay on until his contract ends. Probably
cheaper than outright firing him.

It wasn't that long ago that another Colbert backed talk show, starring Charlamagne the Great, was quickly "disappeared" by Comedy Central (another Paramount holding) after he interviewed Kamala Harris and
didn't softball his questions... something that I suspect pissed off Colbert and the folks at Comedy Central.

I'm sure it did. Stpehen Colbert has always impressed me as a
talentless hack, politics aside.

-- digi

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* Origin: Outpost BBS * Johnson City, TN (618:618/1)

OTOH, if CBS cancelled the show because it was no longer financially feasible, then so be it and good ridance. Considering that CBS could have just fired Colbert, kept the show, and replaced him with someone else, I am inclined to believe that the political/merger issue may have been a happy coincidence for them.

I bet they're letting him stay on until his contract ends. Probably
cheaper than outright firing him.

That'd make sense.

It wasn't that long ago that another Colbert backed talk show, starring Charlamagne the Great, was quickly "disappeared" by Comedy Central (another Paramount holding) after he interviewed Kamala Harris and didn't softball his questions... something that I suspect pissed off Colbert and the folks at Comedy Central.

I'm sure it did. Stpehen Colbert has always impressed me as a
talentless hack, politics aside.

Yeah, he isn't that funny.


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Mike Powell wrote to DIGIMAUS <=-

That'd make sense.

That's a common move in IT: rather than fire someone, make things so uncomfortable that they quit. That way, the comnpany doesn't have to
pay anything extra.

Yeah, he isn't that funny.

He's a one-trick pony and no one's figured out his trick is. XD

-- digi <8D~


... Maybe broccoli doesn't like you either.
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Considering that CBS could
have just fired Colbert, kept the show, and replaced him with someone
else, I am inclined to believe that the political/merger issue may have been a happy coincidence for them.

>> I bet they're letting him stay on until his contract ends. Probably
>> cheaper than outright firing him.

That'd make sense.

Most of those type of contracts, they have to pay the person in full
even if they fire them, other than for specific things their contract
covers where they are warned ahead of time they could be fired so they
might as well get the rest of the time out of him.

I've never watched the Colbert show but he must have a good following
or he wouldn't have been kept on this long, regardless of the less
than expected support he's been getting since..

---
* SLMR Rob * Work is for people who don't know how to fish
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Rob Mccart wrote to MIKE POWELL <=-

I've never watched the Colbert show but he must have a good following
or he wouldn't have been kept on this long, regardless of the less
than expected support he's been getting since..

The "Colbert Show" has been called "therapy for leftists". He is
notoriously single-minded, According to a recent article in the New York Post+,"Since 2022, Colbert has hosted 176 left-leaning guests and only
one Republican on soon-to-be cancelled 'The Late Show,' according to a
study by media watchdog NewsBusters."

+ = https://tinyurl.com/34bf8sk5 (nypost.com)

Link to original article referenced:
https://tinyurl.com/yc4ep4p6 (newsbusters.org)

I watched him for a while once. Putting politics aside, I found him to
be an unfunny telentless ninny, IMNSHO.

<sandbox>
None of these late-night "comedians" hold a candle to Johnny Carson, who
was a liberal himself but knew he was getting paid to make people laugh,
not preach his political beliefs.
</sandbox>

-- digi <8D~

... A critic is one who knows the way but can't drive the car.
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The "Colbert Show" has been called "therapy for leftists". He is

>notoriously single-minded, According to a recent article in the New York
>Post+,"Since 2022, Colbert has hosted 176 left-leaning guests and only
>one Republican on soon-to-be cancelled 'The Late Show,' according to a
>study by media watchdog NewsBusters."

I guess thas explains why Trump likes him so much.. B)

<sandbox>

>None of these late-night "comedians" hold a candle to Johnny Carson, who
>was a liberal himself but knew he was getting paid to make people laugh,
>not preach his political beliefs.
></sandbox>

I rarely got into late night television, although I did see a fair bit
of Johnny Carson years ago. I stopped watching pretty much as soon as
he left the air so I know what you mean..

---
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Rob Mccart wrote to DIGIMAUS <=-

I rarely got into late night television, although I did see a fair bit
of Johnny Carson years ago. I stopped watching pretty much as soon as
he left the air so I know what you mean..

Johnny wasn't full of himself like these guys are.

-- digi <8D~

... If nobody uses it, there's a reason.
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