Adam Schiff, Elizabeth Warren press CBS on 'political' motive in axing Stephen Colbert's 'The Late Show'

MANHATTAN, NEW YORK: Two high-profile Democratic senators are demanding answers from CBS and its parent company, Paramount Global, over the abrupt announcement that ‘The Late Show’ with Stephen Colbert will end in 2026.

Senators Adam Schiff (D-CA) and Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) raised concerns that the cancellation may be politically motivated, following Colbert’s on-air mockery of Paramount’s recent $16 million legal settlement with President Donald Trump.

Senators question CBS' decision to cancel Stephen Colbert's late-night talk show

"Just finished taping with Stephen Colbert who announced his show was cancelled," Adam Schiff wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter). “If Paramount and CBS ended the Late Show for political reasons, the public deserves to know. And deserves better."

In her post, Sen Warren pointed out the suspicious timing, writing, “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. America deserves to know if his show was canceled for political reasons.”

Colbert kicked off the Thursday, July 17 episode of ‘The Late Show’ with a deeply personal and unexpected announcement. The news, Colbert revealed, was as much a surprise to him as it was to his fans.

“Before we start the show, I want to let you know something I found out just last night,” he began, addressing his studio audience, “Next year will be our last season. The network will be ending 'The Late Show' in May.”

The crowd responded with boos, to which Colbert replied, “Yeah, I share your feelings. I’m not being replaced. This is all just going away.”

CBS insists ending 'The Late Show' is a financial move

CBS insists the decision to retire ‘The Late Show’ in May 2026 was driven purely by financial realities.

“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,” a joint statement from CBS and Paramount executives read.

 According to reports, ‘The Late Show’ had been under budgetary scrutiny for years, especially as Paramount navigates a pending merger with Skydance Media.

Although CBS maintains the cancellation was strictly a financial move, several network insiders told The Independent they’re skeptical.

One senior staff member admitted that even with the show's costly production, no one’s really “buying that it’s a financial decision.” The insider added that the news left “everyone stunned,” including “famous comedians.”

Internet reacts after senators demand CBS clarify whether Stephen Colbert's show was canceled for 'political reasons'

Senators Adam Schiff and Elizabeth Warren have called on the network to clarify whether the show’s cancellation was politically motivated, prompting a new wave of heated online reactions. 

However, much of the internet wasn’t convinced by the senators' concerns.

One X user bluntly dismissed the controversy, writing, “No one watches the show. That’s why it’s canceled,” and another said, “It was a terrible show. He stopped being funny and became way too political.”

A person said, “Colbert stopped being relevant when his politics took over everything else," while someone else responded directly to the senators’ involvement, noting, “The fact that you’re on his show is the reason he is canceled.”

Some took aim at the production costs and questioned the show's sustainability in the current media landscape, with one saying, “He said 200 people work on the show. 200 people to produce one hour of TV. Cannot be profitable in today's world. @gutfeldfox is done with a fraction.”

One more wrote, "It was never intended to be funny. It was intended to tell the people what to feel about the news. CBS must be making a deliberate decision to get out of the business of political influence." 

This article contains remarks made on the Internet by individual people and organizations. MEAWW cannot confirm them independently and does not support claims or opinions being made online.