Fox News host Howard Kurtz is blasting CBS and its parent company, Paramount, expressing deep skepticism over the decision to cancel Stephen Colbert’s show and suggesting the move was made to please President Donald Trump.
Over the weekend on his show Media Buzz, Kurtz took a swipe at Paramount, implying that The Late Show With Stephen Colbert was axed as part of a larger political and financial strategy.
In a segment discussing the issue, Kurtz spoke with Brian Steinberg, a senior TV editor from Variety. Steinberg was direct in his assessment, stating this was about company owner Shari Redstone “who needs Trump administration approval to have this sale to Skydance go through and make a lot of money, in my view, really tarnishing the network of Murrow and Cronkite.”
Steinberg stressed the critical nature of the deal for Redstone. “This is an owner, a controlling shareholder who has to have the deal go through,” he said. “She is on the verge of financial ruin, I believe, if it doesn’t happen… Paramount is not doing as great as it once was 20, 30 years ago, and they need a transformative deal to keep her family fortune, as well as her company in business.”
While acknowledging that the late-night television landscape has changed, Kurtz dismissed the idea that the cancellation was a simple business calculation.
Kurtz was firm in his disbelief, declaring, “I’m not buying that blowing up the CBS Late Show had nothing to do with content.” He pointed to Colbert’s undisputed success as proof: “I mean, Stephen Colbert is the biggest name at CBS. He’s been number one for nine straight years in the late-night ratings, and I don’t think Skydance really cares.”
“Does Skydance think we’re dumb enough to believe there’s nothing to see here?” Kurtz questioned.
In contrast, CBS executives have maintained that the decision was “purely a financial decision against a challenging backdrop in late night,” insisting it was “not related in any way to the show’s performance, content or other matters happening at Paramount.”
The news of the cancellation broke just days after Colbert himself lambasted Paramount on his show for allegedly caving to the Trump administration to help secure the Skydance acquisition, a deal requiring approval from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
“This all comes as Paramount’s owners are trying to get the Trump administration to approve the sale of our network to a new owner, Skydance,” Colbert said on his show.
He also criticized Paramount for settling its $16 million lawsuit with Trump over a 60 Minutes interview with former Vice President Kamala Harris, which the MAGA leader claimed was edited to make his opponent look more favorable.
